What's New
Republican Senators Chuck Grassley and Ron Johnson have written to Department of Justice Inspector General (IG) Michael Horowitz demanding to know which roles other department agencies, beyond the FBI, played during the January 6 2021 Capitol Hill riot in Washington D.C.
It came after Horowitz released a report on December 12 which said there were 26 FBI confidential human sources in Washington D.C. that day, four of whom entered the Capitol and 13 the restricted area around it, though none had been prosecuted.
Newsweek contacted Senators Grassley and Johnson for comment via email and the Department of Justice press office using its online inquiry form.
Why It Matters
On January 6 2021 hundreds of Trump supporters stormed Congress in a bid to prevent the certification of Joe Biden's election victory, following discredited claims of electoral fraud made by the then Republican incumbent. During the ensuing violence Ashli Babbitt, a 35-year-old Trump supporter, was shot dead at least 134 police officers were injured.
The riot has long been the subject of conspiracy theories with some Trump supporters claiming either left-wing movement Antifa or the federal government sparked the disorder, though no convincing evidence has been presented to support either theory.
What To Know
In their joint letter, the full text of which Newsweek has not seen, Grassley and Johnson asked Horowitz to "more precisely explain what records it sought and received from all DOJ component agencies."
Specifically both senators asked whether any other DOJ agencies had informers, who are not federal agents but paid for information, in the crowd on January 6.
Speaking to Fox News Digital Grassley commented: "This IG report was a step in the right direction, but Senator Johnson and I still have questions the Justice Department needs to account for.
"The American people deserve a full picture of whether Justice Department sources from its component agencies, in addition to the FBI, were present on January 6, what their role was, and whether DOJ had knowledge of their attendance."
Johnson suggested the December 12 FBI report "may have only provided a fraction of the story regarding the presence and activities of confidential human sources or undercover federal agents in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021" adding: "I urge the Inspector General's office to be fully transparent about their work to ensure that Congress and the public have an accurate and complete understanding about what it actually reviewed."
What People Are Saying
Reacting to Horowitz's report on FBI informers being around the Capitol on January 6 Trump, via his Truth Social website, said: "Wow! This is big news. What a disgrace. Let J-6 Hostages out NOW!!!"
Vice President-elect JD Vance on X posted: "For those keeping score at home, this was labeled a dangerous conspiracy theory months ago."
Appearing on CNN Adam Kinzinger, a former House Republican, said it was perfectly rational for the FBI to have had informants present on January 6.
He said: "Look, the FBI has informants in terrorist organizations. They have informants basically in gangs, you know, whatever they are, and it's somebody that gives the FBI information. They're not in the direction of the FBI. They're not under control. They don't carry a badge. They don't have law enforcement powers.
"They're usually bad people that have an agreement with the FBI, either to get out of prison, to reduce a sentence. Sometimes they're paid; and that's what you have here."
What Happens Next
There have been over 1,100 convictions related to the Capitol Hill riot thus far, with over 600 people being sent to prison for varying lengths of time.
Trump has vowed to pardon "most" of those arrested or convicted over the January 6 riot "in the first hour" after returning to the White House following his January 20 2025 inauguration.
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