According to copies of the letters he sent last week, Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.) has requested records related to the riot on Jan. 6, from both the Metropolitan Police Department as well as the National Archives.
In letters to MPD Chief Robert J. Contee III and U.S. archivist Colleen Shogan, first reported by Politico, Loudermilk requested documents about the attack on the Capitol and the former Democratic-controlled House Jan. 6 committee that investigated the riot before it was dissolved in January.
Loudermilk requested in a 16 May letter sent to Contee by Loudermilk who is the subpanel leader for the House Administration Committee on oversight a list of all officers assigned duty on January 6, 2021 as well as the after-action reports and incident reports.
Loudermilk explained that the requests are part of an effort by the GOP-led Subcommittee to evaluate future security failures, and they fit in with a review on how the former House January 6 Committee conducted its investigation.
He also wants to know about a number of audio and video recordings including radio recordings, MPD electronic security unit recordings, and body camera footage from officers stationed near Capitol Grounds or at the Ellipse on January 6.
The Metropolitan Police did not respond immediately to a comment request. They were asked to provide the records before May 30.
Loudermilk sent a separate 18 May letter to Shogan, the head of the National Archives. In it, Loudermilk asked for an inventory of materials the agency had obtained that were either produced by the House Jan. 6, or provided to the panel by the White House, Department of Homeland Security and others.
Loudermilk wrote: “I’m concerned that we don’t have all the documents and records that are relevant to January 6th, which could help in our oversight efforts.” He requested that these materials be returned by May 31, requesting that they be provided.
National Archives, as well as a spokesperson of Rep. Bennie Thomson, D-Miss. who headed the former House committee Jan. 6, did not respond immediately to comments.
Many Republicans have criticised the findings of former House Jan.6 committee. The committee also released surveillance footage showing Loudermilk taking a tour of Capitol in January 5.
Loudermilk has strongly denied the claim that his group was scouting out the complex in advance of the riot.
In March, he stated in a statement with a strong wording that he concluded the work of the former committee “isn’t credible, and they are owed an apology by every individual whose name they tried to smear.”
