Republicans Avoid Jan. 6 Observances at the Capitol

WASHINGTON — Republicans were obscurity to beryllium recovered astatine the Capitol connected Thursday arsenic President Biden and Democratic members of Congress commemorated the deadliest onslaught connected the gathering successful centuries, reflecting the Republican Party’s reluctance to admit the Jan. 6 riot oregon face its ain relation successful stoking it.

There are presently much than 250 Republican members of Congress — 212 successful the House and 50 successful the Senate. Not a azygous 1 of those senators appeared connected the Senate level to talk astir however rioters laid siege to their workplace successful the sanction of erstwhile President Donald J. Trump, sending them fleeing for their lives.

And erstwhile lawmakers gathered successful the House enclosure for a infinitesimal of soundlessness to commemorate the riot, lone 2 Republicans joined: Representative Liz Cheney of Wyoming, who has been ostracized and marginalized by her enactment for speaking retired against Mr. Trump and his predetermination lies, and her father, erstwhile Vice President Dick Cheney.

The lone Republican-led lawsuit connected Thursday to commemorate Jan. 6 was hosted by 2 lawmakers connected the fringes of the party, Representatives Matt Gaetz of Florida and Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia. Seeking to deflect blasted from Mr. Trump, they held a quality league to elevate unproven conspiracy theories astir the origins of the battle connected the Capitol.

“I deliberation it’s a reflection of wherever our enactment is,” Ms. Cheney told reporters. “Very concerning.”

Some Republicans cited a scheduling conflict. Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and the number leader, was successful Atlanta attending the ceremonial of erstwhile Senator Johnny Isakson of Georgia, on with astatine slightest a twelve different senators from some parties.

In a statement, Mr. McConnell called Jan. 6 “a acheronian time for Congress and our country” successful which the Capitol was “stormed by criminals who brutalized constabulary officers and utilized unit to effort to halt Congress from doing its job.”

But helium besides made wide that helium thought Democrats were playing authorities with the day, accusing them of trying to “exploit this day to beforehand partisan argumentation goals that agelong predated this event.” He was referring to plans by Democratic leaders to try to abolish oregon weaken the legislative filibuster to propulsion done voting rights protections that Republicans person blocked.

Mr. McConnell did not notation to Mr. Trump successful his statement.

Representative Steve Scalise of Louisiana, the No. 2 House Republican, took the aforesaid strategy successful an interrogation connected Fox News, calling Jan. 6 “a time that cipher wanted to spot happen” and noting that helium had swiftly denounced the rioters. But helium rapidly pivoted to blaming Democrats, saying they had made the day “a politicized day.”

“Most of America wants Washington focused connected their problems similar inflation, precocious state prices, the Covid resurgence, the borderline crisis, which President Biden and Speaker Pelosi proceed to conscionable fto spell unanswered,” Mr. Scalise said, “because they privation each time to beryllium astir Jan. 6.”

Scores of different Republicans said small oregon thing 1 twelvemonth aft they evacuated the Capitol arsenic throngs of Mr. Trump’s supporters poured into the building, disrupting the counting of electoral votes to corroborate Mr. Biden arsenic the victor of the statesmanlike election.

It was unclear connected Thursday however Representative Kevin McCarthy of California, the House Republican leader, spent the day. Mr. McCarthy invoked the erstwhile president’s wrath erstwhile helium said hours aft the Jan. 6 onslaught that Mr. Trump bore work for the riot; helium has since walked backmost those remarks.

“It’s not a enactment that resembles immoderate of the folks I knew erstwhile I was present for 10 years,” said Mr. Cheney, a erstwhile House subordinate who served arsenic the Republican whip.

In a abstracted connection aboriginal connected Thursday, Mr. Cheney added, “I americium profoundly disappointed astatine the nonaccomplishment of galore members of my enactment to admit the sedate quality of the Jan. 6 attacks and the ongoing menace to our nation.”

Mr. McCarthy’s tortured effort astatine responding to Jan. 6 illustrates wherefore galore Republicans person preferred to accidental arsenic small arsenic imaginable astir the attack, focusing connected the valiant efforts by instrumentality enforcement officers to support the Capitol alternatively than the person of their enactment who egged connected the rioters.

Representative Tom Rice of South Carolina, 1 of 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Mr. Trump for inciting an insurrection, was 1 of the fewer Republicans who spoke retired connected Thursday to laic work for the onslaught astatine the erstwhile president’s feet.

In an unusually blistering statement, Mr. Rice called Jan. 6 “the time we astir mislaid the state our founders fought for.”

“Any tenable idiosyncratic could person seen the imaginable for unit that day,” helium said. “Yet, our president did thing to support our state and halt the violence. The actions of the president connected Jan. 6 were thing abbreviated of reprehensible.”

In the hours and days instantly pursuing the storming of the Capitol, galore legislature Republicans and their aides, who were near to barricade themselves down desks and doors during the attack, were openly furious. Some appeared to judge — oregon anticipation — that their enactment would astatine past interruption distant from Mr. Trump.

“Trump and I, we’ve had a hellhole of a journey,” Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina and a adjacent state of Mr. Trump, said astatine the time. He added: “All I tin accidental is, number maine out. Enough is enough.”

In a code connected the Senate floor successful February, Mr. McConnell said, “There’s nary question — nary — that President Trump is practically and morally liable for provoking the events of the day.”

But seeing that their voters inactive revered Mr. Trump, astir of those Republicans person since gone silent, preferring to debar opining connected the events of Jan. 6 and leaving those not successful elected bureau to instrumentality up efforts of resistance. The fewer Republican lawmakers who person not followed that approach, including those who voted to impeach Mr. Trump for inciting an insurrection, person go pariahs successful their party.

Key Figures successful the Jan. 6 Inquiry

Karl Rove, a apical Republican strategist and designer of the modern blimpish establishment, utilized a Wall Street Journal sentiment column connected Wednesday to rebuke “those Republicans who for a twelvemonth person excused the actions of the rioters who stormed the Capitol, disrupted Congress arsenic it received the Electoral College’s results and violently attempted to overturn the election.”

“There tin beryllium nary soft-pedaling what happened and nary absolution for those who planned, encouraged and aided the effort to overthrow our democracy,” Mr. Rove wrote. “Love of state demands thing less. That’s existent patriotism.”

Stephanie Grisham, who served arsenic White House property caput for Mr. Trump, said connected CNN connected Thursday that a radical of erstwhile Trump medication officials were planning to conscionable adjacent week successful a long-shot effort to “try and stop” the erstwhile president.

But for the astir part, Republican lawmakers and operatives astatine likelihood with Mr. Trump person recovered themselves pushed to the margins of today’s Republican Party.

Instead, figures similar Mr. Gaetz and Ms. Greene person basked successful the spotlight and won the support of Mr. Trump’s astir ardent supporters, lionizing the rioters and claiming that the erstwhile president bears nary work for the unit that took spot connected Jan. 6.

At their quality league astatine the Capitol connected Thursday, Mr. Gaetz and Ms. Greene projected that if Republicans instrumentality power of the House successful the midterm elections, they should usage the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 onslaught to look into whether national agents stoked the unit against Congress.

There is nary grounds that national agents played immoderate relation successful the assault, which occurred erstwhile supporters of Mr. Trump, who falsely claimed that the predetermination had been stolen from him, stormed the Capitol.

Astead W. Herndon contributed reporting from New York, and Richard Fausset from Atlanta.