House committee holds hearing on January 6 attack

WASHINGTON, D.C. (CNN) – The first hearing of the House Select Committee investigating the January 6th attack is underway. The focus is on officers who responded to the attack, giving their account of what happened that day, and their fear they could be killed that day.

In the first Congressional hearing to investigate the Capitol insurrection, responding officers delivered emotional testimony.

U.S. Capitol Police Sergeant Aquilino Gonell stated, “On January 6th, for the first time, I was more afraid to work at the Capitol than in my entire deployment to Iraq”

Describing the violence in vivid detail, Metropolitan Police Officer Michael Fanone said, “I was grabbed, beaten, tased, all while being called a traitor to my country.”

The seven Democrats and two Republicans of the committee are investigating the security failures that allowed the Capitol to be breached and the political forces behind the riot

Representative Bennie Thompson (D-MS) said, “We need to understand how the rotten lie behind January 6 has continued to spread and feed the forces that would undermine American democracy.”

“If Congress does not act responsibly, this will remain a cancer on our Constitutional republic,” said Representative Liz Cheney (R-WY).

The bipartisan effort faced criticism from some House Republicans over the makeup of the committee.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) said, “Speaker Pelosi will only pick on people onto the committee that will ask the questions she wants asked. That becomes a failed committee and a failed report.”

But officers said they feel betrayed by the very people they serve to protect and are demanding the truth

Officer Fanone said, “Nothing has addressed the elected members of our government that continue to deny the events of that day and in doing so, betray their oath of office.”

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