GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger chokes up at Jan. 6 hearing
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) choked up as he addressed the four police officers testifying at the first hearing of the Jan. 6 select committee, telling them: "Democracies are not defined by our bad days. We're defined by how we come back from bad days."
Why it matters: Kinzinger and Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) are the only two Republicans serving on the committee. Kinzinger said that he chose to accept Speaker Pelosi's appointment to the committee "not in spite of my membership in the Republican Party, but because of it."
What they're saying: "This cannot continue to be a partisan fight. I'm a Republican. I'm a conservative. But in order to heal from the damage caused that day, we need to call out the facts," Kinzinger said.
- "It's time to stop the outrage and the conspiracies that fuel the violence and division in this country, and most importantly, we need to reject those that promote it," he continued.
Kinzinger also addressed Republicans' attempts to compare the Jan. 6 attack to violence during last summer's racial-justice protests, saying: "I condemn those riots and the destruction of property that resulted. But not once did I ever feel that the future of self governance was threatened like I did on Jan. 6."
- "There is a difference between breaking the law and rejecting the rule of law. Between a crime, even grave crimes, and a coup."
