In the U.S. House, when a party is in the minority, it will sometimes organize events that are intended to look like real congressional hearings, but they’re really not. It’s the House majority that controls the committees, and it’s up to committee chairs to decide whether or not to hold proper, legitimate hearings.
Members in the minority will occasionally organize informal meetings, describe invitees as “witnesses,” and hope the media takes an interest, but for all intents and purposes, they’re theatrical presentations, intended to shine a light on concerns the majority prefers to ignore.
What’s weird is when members of the majority feel the need to hold their own fake hearing. Politico reported:
…Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), joined by a handful of others from the conference’s right flank, hosted an event last week with former Trump acting assistant attorney general Jeffrey Clark, people charged in relation to Jan. 6, defendants’ family members and allies. The event featured a veritable kitchen sink of conspiracy theories as well as rehashed false claims, including that the 2020 election was “stolen” and that the Jan. 6 committee “doctored” video.
Just so we’re clear, this was not an actual congressional hearing. The far-right Floridian, however, wanted it to be perceived as one. Gaetz pretended to be a chairman, recognizing members and witnesses, alerting participants to when their time had expired, and explaining that the “testimony” could be used in official proceedings. (That last part was true but irrelevant: Anything can be used in official proceedings, including the blog post you’re reading now.)
The GOP congressman labeled this exercise a Capitol Hill “field hearing,” and he invited a motley crew of House Republicans to join him: Reps. Andy Biggs of Arizona, Paul Gosar of Arizona, Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Troy Nehls of Texas, and Ralph Norman of South Carolina. The ostensible point was to further the far-right investigation into “the weaponization of the federal government.”
But just as notable was the message Gaetz sent with his list of witnesses. The Washington Post’s Dana Milbank, who covered the event, highlighted the Republicans’ guests:
- “The wife of Ronald McAbee, who is awaiting trial for allegedly attacking a police officer and dragging him into the mob while wearing a black vest that said ‘SHERIFF.’
- “Underwear model John Strand, sentenced to two years and eight months for being part of the mob that breached the Capitol on Jan. 6 and pushed past police officers.
- “Activist Brandon Straka, sentenced to home detention and probation and fined for his Jan. 6 actions.
- “The aunt of Matthew Perna; Perna committed suicide while awaiting sentencing for his role in breaching the Capitol.
- “Ed Martin, an organizer of the “Stop the Steal” effort leading up to Jan. 6.
- “And Jeffrey Clark, the Trump Justice Department official who tried to get states to toss the election results.”
Greene told the guests they were victims of “sick, evil people.” Norman added that he considers it “heartbreaking … the way you all have been treated.”
The point, obviously, wasn’t to investigate a “weaponized” government. Rather, as Milbank explained, the gathering was intended to honor “participants in the [Jan. 6] riot, family members of Jan. 6 rioters and organizers of the attempted overthrow of the 2020 vote.”
So why does this matter? In part because of the timing: It was not a coincidence that Gaetz and his radical allies held their faux hearing on midday Tuesday, just as Donald Trump was being arraigned in a Florida courthouse. The larger partisan trajectory is also notable: In the immediate aftermath of the attack on the U.S. Capitol, Gaetz was among the loudest Republican voices suggesting that Jan. 6 rioters might actually have been radical leftists pretending to be Trump supporters. More than two years later, the Floridian and his confederates have not only abandoned that line, they’re now heralding the rioters as heroes and martyrs. But I’m also struck by the fact that the ersatz hearing was allowed to happen in the first place. It wasn’t exactly surprising to see unhinged members of Congress taking fresh steps to embrace what Politico’s report described as “Jan. 6 extremism.” This is, after all, the path they’ve followed for far too long. What was surprising was the fact that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and his GOP leadership team — who are supposed to maintain some degree of control of their conference — didn’t prevent this radical event from taking place. I’d love to hear McCarthy explain why he didn’t.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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