House Republicans planning response to Jan. 6 panel report, GOP rep says

House Republicans are preparing to rebut the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, which is set to release its findings later this week, an Indiana lawmaker said.

Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) told Axios that his Republican colleagues will “focus on security failures.”

Banks also told the news outlet the Jan. 6 panel has “never dealt with the serious issues” related to security at the Capitol that day.

Axios noted that House Republicans investigated the response of Capitol Police and the FBI, likely probing concerns that law enforcement was underprepared on Jan. 6 despite clear warnings of a riot.

Republicans have not yet decided when their 100-plus-page GOP rebuttal will be released, Axios added.

The panel of seven Democrats and two Republicans spent more than a year probing what led up to the Jan. 6 attack, saying it was important to investigate to prevent a similar incident from happening again.

In a series of high-profile hearings over the summer, the panel placed former President Trump at the center of efforts to overturn the 2020 election, warning his actions led to an attempted insurrection on Jan. 6.

Over the fall, the committee formally subpoenaed Trump to testify and is expected to refer criminal charges against the former president to the Department of Justice ahead of the release of its final report on Wednesday.

The House panel will also hold a final public hearing on Monday.