Four House Republicans introduced legislation this week that would set up a National Commission on Domestic Terrorist Attacks on the United States to investigate the Antifa riots that continue to take place in cities across the nation.
The bill from Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., would set up a commission along the lines of prior bodies set up by Congress to examine the 9/11 attacks and the January 6 riot at the Capitol.
Bacon said a commission is needed to examine the Antifa riots that exploded in more than 100 cities across the country in the wake of the 2020 death of George Floyd – attacks many Republicans say have been pushed to the back burner by Democrat leaders in states and in the federal government.
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“Many cities were burned, and businesses destroyed,” Bacon said. “Retired police officer David Dorn was shot and killed while protecting a business. People were harassed while simply eating at outside restaurants, and Americans across the nation feared for their lives.”
While dozens of attacks took place in 2020, Antifa protesters were also involved in the violence that took place in Atlanta last week. That incident forced Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp to declare a state of emergency.
“Most recently, Atlanta was the scene of violence as businesses were targeted and law enforcement vehicles were attacked,” Bacon said. “Just as with the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, we must learn the truth about who is behind the violence and who is pushing the narrative to try and weaken our country and scare people into submission.”
Under the Democrat-controlled House of the last two years, several Republicans have complained that Democrats were only focused on the January 6 riot at the Capitol, but not any of the riots in other cities caused by extreme left groups. Rep. Brian Babin, R-Texas, a cosponsor of Bacon’s bill, said it is time to examine those events that some estimates say caused up to $2 billion in property damage.
“It’s past time we investigate the violence and destruction Antifa has inflicted on our cities,” said Babin. “These extremists must be held accountable for their crimes.”
Two other co-sponsors, Reps. Maria Salazar, R-Fla., and Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., said Congress needs to study the threat Antifa poses to American democracy.
“We must better understand what happened during these riots – who organized them, who funded them, and who led them?” Tenney said. “Every American has the right to assemble peacefully, and the National Commission on Domestic Terrorist Attacks in the United States will ensure this right is strengthened and protected by investigating these violent attacks by Antifa.”