A video of the Jan. 6 insurrection is displayed during the House prime committee proceeding connected the Jan. 6 onslaught connected Capitol Hill successful Washington, Tuesday, July 27, 2021. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post via AP, Pool)

A video of the Jan. 6 insurrection is displayed during the House prime committee proceeding connected the Jan. 6 onslaught connected Capitol Hill successful Washington, Tuesday, July 27, 2021. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post via AP, Pool) (The Washington Post)

WASHINGTON – A House committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection astatine the Capitol has hired erstwhile Republican Rep. Denver Riggleman arsenic a elder unit member, bringing connected the one-term Virginia lawmaker arsenic GOP leaders person criticized the sheet arsenic excessively partisan.

The committee's chairman, Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson, announced Riggleman's hiring Friday evening, saying Riggleman has a “deep inheritance successful nationalist information and quality matters.” Riggleman served successful subject quality and worked astatine the National Security Agency earlier helium was elected to the House successful 2018. He was defeated by Republican Rep. Bob Good successful 2020.

The committee is investigating the insurrection by erstwhile President Donald Trump's supporters, who bushed police, broke into the gathering and interrupted the certification of President Joe Biden's victory. The House voted to signifier the committee successful June and has held 1 proceeding with constabulary officers who were injured and verbally attacked that day.

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Riggleman's hiring comes aft House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy decided not to name immoderate members to the sheet and called it a “sham.” He had primitively tapped 5 Republicans to service connected the committee but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi rejected 2 of them, prompting McCarthy to retreat his members completely.

Pelosi aboriginal appointed 2 Republicans who person been captious of Trump, his relation successful the insurrection and his lies astir wide predetermination fraud — Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger and Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney. Cheney recommended Riggleman, besides a Trump critic, for the occupation connected the panel.

The committee besides announced the assignment of Joe Maher, a main lawman wide counsel for the Department of Homeland Security. Maher volition besides service arsenic a elder unit subordinate connected item from the Homeland department, wherever helium has served for much than a decade.

In the statement, Thompson said Riggleman and Maher “understand however adjacent our ideology was to catastrophe connected January 6th and I commend their committedness to assistance guarantee we ne'er spot a repetition of that day.”

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