As investigations into the deadly January 6 siege of the Capitol continue, questions about how pro-Trump rioters were able to access specific locations in the building are surfacing. According to Rep. Kim Schrier (D-Wash. 8th District), it is not out of the realm of possibility that the mob was aided by members of Congress.
"Inciting insurrection is impeachable but it is also illegal. Although I'm not a lawyer, I think that that needs to be pursued. I can tell you that it is already being looked into by the FBI, looking at who inside was helping," she told Cheddar.
While officials have not yet given confirmation, there are reports from members like Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J. 11th District) that some members of Congress toured the Capitol building Tuesday with groups that included individuals accused of attacking it the following day.
"And the fact there were any tours going on in a Capitol during the COVID pandemic when nobody's allowed unless they are personally escorted in by a member of Congress, suggests that if there was insider knowledge, that some of my colleagues may have been co-conspirators," Schrier said.
The Washington representative is calling for those officials to be held accountable if the allegations are true, as well as President Donald Trump and any GOP supporters that may have incited violence.
Though the House impeached Trump for a historic second time on Wednesday, the process will likely linger past Inauguration Day. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said he will not call senators back before next week to hold a hearing on the charge of high crimes and misdemeanors. Still, Schrier said the facts of the case are clear-cut and could be handled before Biden is sworn in.
"I think that this should be, could be, a very speedy trial," she said. "I believe that if we can call back 435 members of Congress, we can certainly call back 100 senators to take this up immediately and I think that's what [McConnell] should do."
Democratic Agenda
For Schrier, the sooner the body is able to address the president's role in last week's Capitol siege, the better equipped Congress will be to get to work once President-elect Joe Biden is sworn in. Democrats will soon control all three legislative branches and the Washington congresswoman said the body will be able to work on solutions that have been pushed aside during the Trump presidency.
Among top priorities will be getting more COVID relief to Americans and improving laws guiding elections, according to Schrier, who sits on the Energy and Commerce Committee.
"It is urgent, I believe, that we pass H.R. 1, the big government reform bill that gets corruption out of politics, gets big special interest money out of our politics, makes it easier to vote."
While Democrats will control two branches of the federal government for at least the next two years, Schrier said members from both sides of the aisle will need to repair their working relationships.
"This really needs truth and reconciliation and frankly it will need a lot of Republicans to step up and speak the truth," she said, adding, "Even those who voted against impeachment yesterday, many of them still condemned the president's behavior, and so it will really take some voices of conscience from within to speak to their own part and set this right."
Markets were pointing mostly lower to end the week as investors reacted to the threat of a Covid resurgence in Europe. Jeff Schulze, Investment Strategist at ClearBridge Investments joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss Friday's pre-market activity.
A federal judge tossed out a lawsuit against financial services platform Robinhood following the meme stock saga that swept the investment world. The judge said it found no wrongdoing on Robinhood's part after the platform halted trading on popular meme stocks Gamestop and AMC.
Jill and Carlo are back to cover the latest in the Rittenhouse trial, new information on the origins of Covid, return-to-office and more.
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The U.S. Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against Uber after it was discovered that disabled people were being disproportionately affected by extra “wait time” fees. Attorney Jonathan Bell joined Cheddar to discuss.
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A group of crypto investors has come together to raise millions of dollars in the hopes of owning a rare piece of the U.S. Constitution. According to the crypto group, "Constitution DAO" It is time to put the constitution in the hands of the people. CEO and Founder of Metaversal Yossi Hasson, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Polarization is among the defining traits of American politics in the 21st century. Sometimes it seems like the only thing we can all agree on is the fact that we don't really agree on anything. But those divisions don't just stop at whether you vote red or blue.
A new survey from the Pew Research Center finds that rather than just two political buckets, we have nine. The "2021 political typology" as it's called distinguishes between different ideological subsets in the Democratic and Republican party. It encompasses everyone from the loudest revolutionary lefties, to the loudest insurrection apologists on the right.
Andrew Daniller, research associate at the Pew Research Center, joins None of the Above to discuss.
Tanya Snyder, transportation reporter at Politico, joins None of the Above with J.D. Durkin to discuss the bipartisan infrastructure law, what it means for the electric vehicle industry and whether Democrats will be able to capitalize on the legislative victory ahead of the 2022 midterms.
Heading into 2022, the eyes of political nerds like us are fixed on statehouses across the country. State legislatures are in the process of taking the data from the 2020 census and using it to draw new congressional districts. The process has major implications for midterms, as Republicans could retake the majority just by gerrymandering enough seats into their column. In Maryland, state level Democrats are considering several maps, one of which would completely draw out the only Republican from the state in Congress.
Bruce DePuyt, senior reporter at Maryland Matters, and Helen Brewer, legal analyst at Princeton's Electoral Innovation Lab, join Cheddar Politics to discuss.
