Kinzinger says Secret Service Jan. 6 acts possibly 'very criminal’ - MSNBC

The House Jan. 6 committee hearing past week opened a model into the chaos that preceded the Capitol attack, arsenic good arsenic the assorted figures who played roles successful bringing it to fruition. 

Thanks to media reports and nationalist hints from committee members, we knew to expect the proceeding would absorption heavy connected Secret Service agents’ actions starring up to and during the siege of the U.S. Capitol. But the proceeding raised much questions than answers, peculiarly aft the committee shared warnings the Secret Service received astir right-wing extremist groups readying to perpetrate unit and perchance termination radical connected Jan. 6, 2021. 

Now, successful airy of revelations from past week's hearing, a subordinate of the committee has travel guardant to accidental it’s imaginable Secret Service agents engaged successful “very transgression activity” erstwhile they offered questionable grounds successful erstwhile sit-downs with the Jan. 6 committee to sermon their actions connected and astir the time of the attack. 

Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., made those remarks Monday connected CNN's "The Situation Room" successful effect to a question astir Tony Ornato, a longtime Secret Service cause whom President Donald Trump appointed to beryllium his White House lawman main of unit successful 2019. Ornato is alleged to person firsthand cognition of Trump’s reasoning and whereabouts the greeting of Jan. 6. 

“There are immoderate inconsistencies that we’re going to pursue," Kinzinger told big Wolf Blitzer, adding: “There is thing going connected astatine the Secret Service, either axenic incompetence each the mode connected the standard to perchance precise transgression enactment oregon conscionable having a penchant for 1 broadside oregon the other."

And I agree! 

Kinzinger’s prime to marque those remarks aft being asked astir Ornato could beryllium a hint astir what’s going connected down the scenes with the committee and its radical of interest.  

To refresh your memory: Ornato reportedly testified earlier the committee successful January and March. This was earlier erstwhile White House adjutant Cassidy Hutchinson testified astatine a nationalist committee proceeding successful June — earlier Hutchinson publically alleged that she had heard Trump was irate erstwhile Secret Service agents refused to thrust him to the Capitol connected Jan. 6 arsenic unit was unfolding. And earlier Hutchinson publically alleged Secret Service agents knew Trump supporters were equipped astatine the rally that instantly preceded the attack.

(Check retired this live blog station I wrote during the past proceeding astir White House information officials’ interest that Trump’s quality alongside deadly rioters would, by definition, solidify the unit arsenic a coup.)

The Secret Service denied immoderate parts of Hutchinson’s grounds implicit the summer. Ornato served arsenic Secret Service adjunct manager aft his relation arsenic a Trump White House lawman main of staff. He resigned from the Secret Service successful August. Kinzinger has publicly said the committee believes Ornato is simply a source feeding reporters info to effort to discredit Hutchinson.

But documents the committee shared past week mostly enactment Hutchinson’s claims. My MSNBC workfellow Hayes Brown wrote astatine the clip astir why those documents could beryllium atrocious quality for Ornato. (Hint, hint: It has to bash with perchance lying to national investigators.)

There’s besides the lingering question of precisely however — and astatine whose acquisition — tranches of Jan. 6-related texts Secret Service agents were asked to sphere were deleted, reportedly irretrievably. There’s nary telling wherever pulling connected that drawstring volition lead, but successful airy of the accusation unearthed past week, Kinzinger and the committee are intelligibly champing astatine the spot to question Secret Service agents and those connected to them, including Ornato.

“They person made it wide done anonymous sources that they’re consenting to travel successful and testify,” Kinzinger told CNN on Monday. "We privation to perceive them again. We privation to speech to them, and it’s going to beryllium nether oath."