And the GOP is not pleased

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We're keeping an eye on two big (and familiar) things this week—the Jan. 6 committee and infrastructure. The select committee will finally get off the ground tomorrow with its first hearing, but not without the requisite partisan controversy. Republicans angered by the addition of Rep. Adam Kinzinger to the committee, as well as the rejection of two GOP picks last week, are seeking punitive actions from leadership. One can't help but think this all could have been avoided if Republicans simply agreed to an independent bipartisan commission. Speaking of bipartisan, a "final final" deal on infrastructure is supposed to be ready this week. Seems like we've heard this before, but maybe we'll get lucky this time. And when we're not watching the Hill, we're enjoying the long-awaited 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. Go, Team USA! Have a great week, everyone. —Melissa Amour, Managing Editor

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** Calling Adam Kinzinger
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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced yesterday that she has appointed Rep. Adam Kinzinger to the select committee that will investigate the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Kinzinger became the second Republican, after Rep. Liz Cheney, to join the panel. "For months, lies and conspiracy theories have been spread, threatening our self-governance. Self-governance requires accountability and responsibility. My faith requires the same of me," Kinzinger said in a statement. "I swore an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution—and while this is not the position I expected to be in or sought out, when duty calls, I will always answer." —The Hill ([link removed])
* — "A bridge too far." A growing number of House Republicans wants GOP leadership to punish Cheney and Kinzinger for accepting positions on the committee. Some members specifically want House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to push for a vote to strip them of their other committee assignments. "It would speak volumes if he took away their committee assignments for upholding their oath to protecting our democracy," said Maura Gillespie, Kinzinger's communications director. —CNN ([link removed])
*
* — Hostility in the House. McCarthy, meanwhile, has ramped up his public attacks on Pelosi after she rejected two of his initial committee selections, Reps. Jim Jordan and Jim Banks. Calling her a "lame duck speaker" and accusing her of destroying the institution, McCarthy is facing pressure from the House Freedom Caucus to take a symbolic shot at Pelosi with a "motion to vacate the speaker's chair." Though such a move wouldn't succeed, it would represent a dramatic escalation of the feud between the two party leaders. —CNN ([link removed])
*
* — It begins tomorrow. The committee will kick off deliberations tomorrow with testimony from police officers who battled the violent mob on Jan. 6. Rep. Bennie Thompson, the panel's chair, who has a reputation for working across the aisle, hopes to steer clear of partisan politics. By exposing the truth of the attack, he says he hopes to prevent such an attack from ever happening again. "(Then) I would have made what I think is the most valuable contribution to this great democracy," Thompson said. —New York Daily News ([link removed])

MORE: New Capitol Police chief says officers testifying 'need to be heard' —CBS News ([link removed])


** Internal turmoil rocks Arizona audit
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Ken Bennett, a former Republican secretary of state in Arizona and the spokesperson for the Maricopa County election audit, was barred last week from entering the building where the audit is taking place. Why? Because he shared sample data from the count with two election-technology analysts. The order to bar Bennett reportedly came directly from State Senate President Karen Fann. Fann suggested earlier this month that the official vote count and the audit tally did not match up, leading her to order a new recount. However, the data that Bennett provided to the analysts corroborated the county's officially certified numbers, potentially calling into question any results or conclusions drawn from the audit. Stay tuned. — ([link removed]) Insider ([link removed])

MORE: Trump hails Arizona Senate for audit at Phoenix rally, slams governor —The Hill ([link removed])


** NYT Ed Board: The challenge to freedom of speech
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"The strength of 1st Amendment protections depends on public support. History shows that when faith in the value of free speech is eroded, the freedom is soon eroded, too. The loss of faith is intertwined with other challenges to the American experiment. Political polarization is straining the ability of Americans to understand each other's viewpoints, as well as their tolerance for what they cannot understand. Americans also are losing confidence that their political opponents will play by the same rules, undermining the argument that allowing others to speak is the best safeguard of one's own right to do so." —The New York Times ([link removed])


** Infrastructure plan 'about 90% of the way there'
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Democratic senators and White House officials negotiating the bipartisan infrastructure deal put forth a "global offer" to their Republican colleagues yesterday addressing all remaining issues, as members race to reach an agreement on the nearly $600 billion plan. Sen. Mark Warner predicted the details would be finalized this afternoon and said negotiators are "down to the last couple of items." Sen. Rob Portman, a lead negotiator for Republicans, said yesterday that the two sides remain at odds on money for mass transit, but added, "I feel good about getting that done this week." Fingers crossed. — ([link removed]) CBS News ([link removed])

MORE: Pelosi, Portman skirmish over bipartisan infrastructure timeline —Politico ([link removed])
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** Radosh: Why doesn't the DSA support democracy in Cuba?
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"It is now clear that these self-proclaimed 'democratic socialists' eschew democracy. Perhaps they should make it clear that [the Democratic Socialists of America] support totalitarian and repressive governments in the name of protecting socialism—just as the Old Left did throughout the Cold War with the Soviet bloc. As the old Pete Seeger song goes, 'When will they ever learn?'" —Ronald Radosh in The xxxxxx ([link removed])

Ronald Radosh is an author and the professor emeritus of history at the City University of New York.

MORE: South Floridians in D.C. call for freedom in Cuba, urge Biden to take action ahead of march —WSVN ([link removed])


** Focus on Tunisia
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Tunisia is facing the greatest challenge yet to its young democracy, birthed from the 2011 Arab Spring, which led to the ouster of an autocracy in favor of democratic rule. In a statement last night, President Kais Saied—a political independent who swept into office in 2019 after campaigning against a corrupt, incompetent elite—announced that he is dismissing Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi and freezing the country's parliament for a period of 30 days. ([link removed])
* — A response to citizen protests. The announcement came after a day of protests against the parliament and its largest party, Ennahdha, following a spike in COVID-19 cases and anger over political dysfunction and economic malaise. Ennahdha supporters faced off against Saied supporters, as police held them apart. Police also stormed Al Jazeera's bureau in Tunis, asking all journalists to leave. ([link removed])
*
* — "An assault on democracy." Parliament Speaker Rached Ghannouchi, head of Ennahdha, decried the moves as a coup, and two of the other main parties in the parliament agreed. Ghannouchi arrived at the parliament today to hold a session in defiance of Saied, but was stopped by the army. Former President Moncef Marzouki said it could represent the start of a slope "into an even worse situation." ([link removed])
*
* — Saied rejects accusations of a coup. He says his actions are based on Article 80 of the constitution and frames them as a popular response to economic and political paralysis. He also has warned against any armed response to his actions, saying, "Whoever shoots a bullet, the armed forces will respond with bullets." —NBC News ([link removed])


** Boisture: We can save America from a partisan death spiral
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"In politics, when we bridgers begin to show up in larger and larger numbers to vote at party caucuses and primaries, we will inspire a new generation of candidates who share our bridging values, and more and more will win. Responding to this new political reality, our political parties will stop moving further to the extremes and, instead, take up the vital work of finding practical, common ground strategies to address our big challenges. When this happens, our principled policy differences will begin to drive a virtuous competition leading us toward that mix of liberal and conservative policies that most effectively support human flourishing and the flourishing of the natural world." —Bob Boisture in ([link removed]) USA Today ([link removed])

Bob Boisture is the president and CEO of the Fetzer Institute.

Carole L. of New York, I agree. The party system has outlived its usefulness. There must be a better way to nominate candidates. —David M., Colorado

Dillon K. of Utah: you have identified the political problem of the moment. If you are a moderate, and especially a center-right person, you have no real representation anymore. That's why we need to push for a third option: a "compassionate conservative" or, in your example, a "Christian Democrat." —Will C., Mississippi

Q: You know why the elephant is on the endangered species list? A: You can't stretch a mask around its trunk. —Ron T., Texas
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** The views expressed in "What's Your Take?" are submitted by readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff or the Stand Up Republic Foundation.
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