Jan. 6 panel wants answers from lawmaker it says led a Capitol tour before the attack

The House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol is asking Georgia GOP Rep. Barry Loudermilk to voluntarily share information about a tour he led the day before the siege that could have helped insurrectionists.

The panel said Loudermilk should appear before the committee on Monday to explain.

Soon after the attack, where rioters broke through barriers and stormed the Capitol hoping to stop the certification of the 2020 presidential election, concerns arose that some Republican lawmakers had given tours of the Capitol complex that later helped people navigate the hallways and offices.

Loudermilk and House Republicans have long claimed they didn't lead any such pre-Jan. 6 tours.

"However, the Select Committee's review of evidence directly contradicts that denial," Committee Chairman Bennie G. Thompson, D-Miss., and Vice Chair Liz Cheney, R-Wyo.,Thompson and Cheney said in their letter to Loudermilk.

"Based on our review of evidence in the Select Committee's possession, we believe you have information regarding a tour you led through parts of the Capitol complex on January 5, 2021," they also wrote. "Public reporting and witness accounts indicate some individuals and groups engaged in efforts to gather information about the layout of the U.S. Capitol, as well as the House and Senate office buildings, in advance of January 6, 2021."

Loudermilk did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NPR.

So far, the panel has requested information from six House Republicans. Recently, five of those members were subpoenaed, including GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy.

The panel has interviewed about 1,000 witnesses, and publicly announced about 100 subpoenas for witnesses. It plans to hold eight public hearings next month to present their findings starting on June 9. [Copyright 2022 NPR]