Gary Peters

The question that we certainly need to have answered is why did it take so long for the National Guard to respond?

It was not treated seriously by the previous administration. In fact, you could argue it was encouraged.

It was clear, as you mentioned, which is absolutely clear, on social media it was all over the place.

What did you see that leads you to believe that this was a coordinated attack?

How could you not get that vital intelligence on the eve of what’s going to be a major event?

The three hour and 19-minute delay in authorizing the deployment of the National Guard to respond to the Capitol to quell the violence was one that left police, Members of Congress, staff, and the public in danger and is without question…

I am committed to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, across multiple committees, to ensure that we are setting policy that will provide the foundation for our national security agencies' threat and treat domestic…

It is not enough for agencies to simply promise to do better. Congress must make reforming our counterterrorism efforts a top priority.

I remain concerned that our national security agencies are simply not adequately focused on domestic terrorism, which we all agree is the number one terrorist threat to our homeland.

For the past two years, I have been working to draw attention to the rise of domestic terrorism, and specifically violence driven by white supremacists.

It is clear that this violent, coordinated attack was the result of a massive and historic intelligence failure.

I certainly want to thank Ranking Members Blunt and Portman and all of the members who came here together today to work in a bipartisan way.

This was a shocking assault on our democracy, and it marked one of our Nation's darkest days.

For years, I have been raising the alarm about the growing domestic terrorism threat.

I have worked to draw attention to the rising threat of domestic terrorism, including the rise of insidious ideologies of white supremacy, antigovernment militias, and now QAnon conspiracies.

Our goal today is to begin to understand where those breakdowns and failures occurred and to determine if there are policy and structural changes Congress must make to prevent a future attack of this nature.

We owe it to the American people to figure out how the United States Capitol, the preeminent symbol of democracy around the world, could be overtaken by an angry, violent mob.

There is no question that there were colossal breakdowns in the intelligence gathering and security preparations leading up to the events of January 6th.

The January 6 attack must mark a turning point.

The Executive Order outlines a new office within the procurement office, the Made in America Office.

To me it is common sense, particularly in the middle of this economic crisis, that when the Federal Government spends money, taxpayer money, that they should be spending that money on products that are made here in America to help support…

Speed is of the essence.

I would welcome working with you, Senator Lankford, and Senator Hassan on these issues, as well as the Committee.

I was pleased to see President Biden's Executive Order strengthening Buy American provisions and creating a Made in America Office (MIAO) at the OMB.

As President Biden puts it, she is 'smart as hell.'