Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) condemned her fellow Republicans who protested outside the Department of Justice while a hearing on the Capitol riot took place.
Republican Reps. Louie Gohmert (Texas), Matt Gaetz (Fla.), Paul Gosar (Ariz.) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.) held a press conference at 1 p.m. on Tuesday outside the Department of Justice (DOJ) demanding to know the status and treatment of those arrested for their participation on Jan. 6.
The Republican-led protest happened as Capitol police officers were giving testimonies regarding the events that occurred on Jan. 6 when a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol.
Cheney condemned the group and Republican leadership for what she described as a shift from recognizing “what actually happened” on Jan. 6 to protesting outside the DOJ during the hearing.
“The fact that they’ve gone from recognizing what happened on the 6th to protesting in front of the DOJ on behalf of those who are part of the insurrection … I think it’s a disgrace,” she said.
It is not clear that anyone from Republican leadership was involved in the protest. The protest was interrupted by counterprotesters and ended abruptly.
The GOP representatives on Monday sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland asking “to discuss the status of the January 6th prisoners and related investigations.”
“In addition, we have concerns about reports of the conditions of the prison where these detainees are being held and whether, in fact, there have been instances of abuse inflicted by other prisoners or guards. We also have questions regarding whether some have been or are currently being imprisoned in solitary confinement for the purpose of punishment or as a means of cruel and unusual punishment,” the group said in the letter.
Cheney, along with Rep. Adam Kinzinger (Ill.), are the only two Republicans on the Jan. 6 panel designed to investigate the events of that day. The first hearing of the select committee happened on Tuesday.