President Joe Biden’s administration expressed support Tuesday for creating a 9/11-style commission to investigate the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6 by a pro-Trump mob as well as ramping up physical security around the Capitol.
The White House released statements backing a pair of bills that would create the commission and divert funding toward heightening security in and around the U.S. Capitol. The bill does not, however, call for permanent fencing around the complex, which Capitol Hill Police had previously requested.
“The Nation deserves such a full and fair accounting to prevent future violence and strengthen the security and resilience of our democratic institutions,” the White House said of a Jan. 6 Commission. (RELATED: REPORT: US Capitol Police Union Criticize Leadership For Lack of Preparation Ahead Of Capitol Riots)
If passed through Congress, the commission would investigate the circumstances surrounding the Capitol riots, such as police preparedness and response, and publish its findings. The 9/11 Commission published a comprehensive report on the events of September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, going into extensive detail on the timeline of the events and the parties involved.
WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 05: An eight-foot-tall steel security fence continues to encircle the U.S. Capitol on April 05, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
The physical security bill would allocate funds to “reimburse direct costs incurred by the attack on the Capitol; improve facility security; protect Members of Congress, employees, and visitors; provide judicial security; and reimburse Legislative Branch entities for COVID-19 pandemic costs.”
The bill would reimburse $521 million to the Army and Air National Guard for its 5 months of work supplementing the U.S. Capitol Police in the wake of Jan. 6. Troops remained in the capital well past Biden’s inauguration on Jan. 20.
Democratic Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson and Republican New York Rep. John Katko, the two top lawmakers on the House Homeland Security Committee, reached an agreement on the bill creating the bipartisan Jan. 6 commission Friday.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy has since expressed opposition to the bill, however.