Worthy Christian News > US News > Speaker Johnson Picks His Battles, Biden Impeachment on the Table and the Release of J6 Tapes

Speaker Johnson Picks His Battles, Biden Impeachment on the Table and the Release of J6 Tapes

by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – Following the budget resolution passed last week, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) turned his attention to the impeachment inquiry of  President Joe Biden (D-DE)  and promised the full release of the January 6 surveillance tapes, emphasizing his commitment to government transparency.

By Friday afternoon, approximately 90 hours of footage had been uploaded to the House Administration Committee’s website, a move criticized by Democrats and left-leaning groups as a security threat.

Speaker Johnson said in a statement concerning the release of the footage from Capitol Hill on January 6, 2021: “When I ran for Speaker, I promised to make accessible to the American people the 44,000 hours of video from Capitol Hill security taken on January 6, 2021. Truth and transparency are critical.”

“This decision will provide millions of Americans, criminal defendants, public interest organizations, and the media an ability to see for themselves what happened that day, rather than having to rely upon the interpretation of a small group of government officials,” stated Johnson.

Former President Donald Trump commended the Speaker’s decision.

“Congratulations to Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, for having the Courage and Fortitude to release all of the J6 Tapes, which will explicitly reveal what really happened on January 6th!” Trump wrote in a Friday Truth Social post.

However, not all were pleased with the Speaker’s decision, as Democrats questioned the safety of publicizing the footage.

“It is unconscionable that one of Speaker Johnson’s first official acts as steward of the institution is to endanger his colleagues, staff, visitors, and our country by allowing virtually unfettered access to sensitive Capitol security footage,” said Rep. Joseph D. Morelle (D-NY), ranking member of the House Administration Committee. “That he is doing so over the strenuous objections of the security professionals within the Capitol Police is outrageous. This is not transparency, this is dangerous and irresponsible.”

Budget Criticism

Speaker Johnson drew criticism from the Freedom Caucus last week for approving a budget resolution in the House that secured passage solely with Democratic support.

While steering the Budget resolutions through Congress last Tuesday, Speaker Johnson emphasized, “We are not surrendering; we’re fighting,”  He continued, “But you have to be wise about choosing the fights; you have to have fights that you can win, and we’re going to. You’re going to see this House majority stand together on our principal, and we’re going to do that.”

Upcoming 2024 Elections

Nevertheless, Speaker Johnson, realizing that he could not win a budget battle this year, strategically adopted a longer-term perspective, foreseeing significant political battles and setting the tone for the upcoming 2024 elections, as noted by political analysts.

Currently, Democrats hold a 51-49 majority in the U.S. Senate. However, the 2024 Senate map appears favorable for Republicans, as Democrats are tasked with defending 23 out of the 34 seats at stake. Among these, three seats are in states that favored Trump in 2020—West Virginia, Montana, and Ohio.

Additionally, five other Democratic-held seats are in pivotal swing states narrowly won by President Biden in 2020—Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.

Impeachment Inquiry

Last Wednesday, Speaker Johnson pledged his ‘full and unwavering support’ for the Biden impeachment inquiry.

“At this stage, our impeachment inquiry has already shown the corrupt conduct of the President’s family, and that he and White House officials have repeatedly lied about his knowledge and involvement in his family’s business activities,” Johnson said, according to The Hill. “It has also exposed the tens of millions of dollars from foreign adversaries being paid to shell companies controlled by the President’s son, brother, and their business associates.”

Speaker Johnson added that he had been briefed by the Oversight, Judiciary, and Ways and Means committees on the issue.

“I commend the good work of Chairmen [James] Comer, [Jim] Jordan, and [Jason] Smith. As we move forward toward an inflection point in this critical investigation, they have my full and unwavering support,” said Johnson. “Now, the appropriate step is to place key witnesses under oath and question them under the penalty of perjury, to fill gaps in the record.”

Investigations Called Into January 6 Committee

Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) called for an investigation of the disbanded House January 6 committee. He alleges that both former and current committee members intentionally concealed footage from the Capitol riots in a message posted on X.

“Why didn’t Liz Cheney and Adam Kizinger ever refer to any of these tapes? Maybe they never looked for them. Maybe they never even questioned their own narrative. Maybe they were just too busy selectively leaking the text messages of Republicans they wanted to defeat,” Lee wrote in a post on X.

Democrats have alleged that their Republican counterparts are attempting to whitewash the events of that day when supporters of Trump breached the Capitol to disrupt the certification of election results.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) reports that over 1,200 individuals have faced charges related to the events on January 6, 2021. Among them, more than 400 are accused of felony charges, including assaulting or impeding law enforcement. As of early September, the DOJ’s Washington, D.C., office noted that 623 people had been sentenced, with not all receiving jail time. Additionally, approximately 657 individuals had pleaded guilty to federal charges, with many anticipating or already facing incarceration at sentencing.