The U.S. Capitol Police department has distanced itself from a mysterious and largely unexplained partisan letter circulated by Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Maryland) on Capitol Hill.
Raskin told reporters that Capitol Police officers dropped the anonymous letter off at his office shortly before a House vote on creating commission to investigate the January 6 Capitol riots. He said the officers claimed it represented 40 or 50 of their colleagues. The letter, written on Capitol Police letterhead, criticized Republicans who oppose the commission, and was signed "Proud Members of the United States Capitol Police."
Raskin's staff sent the letter to other Congressional offices before the vote with an email stating, "Mr. Raskin is hoping your bosses will read this letter, and consider the sentiments behind it, before the vote," according to an article in The Hill.
Read The Hill article here.
The U.S. Capitol Police issued a statement reading, "A statement is circling on social media, which expresses an opinion about the proposed legislation to create a commission to investigate January 6. This is NOT an official USCP statement. The U.S. Capitol Police does NOT take positions on legislation."
Click here to see the Capitol Police tweet
Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colorado) later tweeted: "How did an unofficial, unverified, anonymous letter circulated by House Democrats get published on official Capitol Police letterhead?"
The House passed the legislation 252-175, with nearly three dozen Republicans voting along with Democrats in favor of the commission.
Leave a Reply