this evening, the Select Committee to investigate the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol will hold its first public hearing. For more than 10 months, the January 6 Select Committee has labored diligently to discover and document the truth about the day we nearly lost our democracy. This evening, the committee will begin to lay out publicly, for the first time, the coordinated plan in place to overturn the results of the 2020 Presidential election and prevent the peaceful transition of power to a new administration in America. Those are incredible words that I have just spoken, but they reflect the reality of January 6, 2021. Among the witnesses will be Capitol Police Officer Caroline Edwards, one of the more than 140 Capitol and Metropolitan police officers who was injured when the mob attacked the Capitol. To Officer Edwards and all of the police officers who defended American democracy that day and who continue to protect this Capitol every day, we owe more than our thanks. January 6 revealed to the world how fragile democracy can be, even in America. Keeping our democracy requires vigilance and truth. Often, it requires sacrifice, and there must be a willingness to accept that truth. It is regrettable--no, it is shameful--that our Republican colleagues in the Senate filibustered the creation of an independent, bipartisan commission to investigate what happened on January 6. I recall that moment, and I am sure the Presiding Officer does as well.…
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