Reprinted with permission from Alternet

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has named the first members to the House January 6 Insurrection Special Select Committee.

The chairman will be Mississippi Democrat Bennie Thompson, who led the negotiations for the first bill which the House passed but Republicans in the Senate blocked. Thompson also chairs the House Homeland Security Committee.

Thompson, after being named chair, described the events of January 6 as "domestic terrorism."

Speaker Pelosi also named the first Republican member of Congress, Congresswoman Liz Cheney of Wyoming, who has supported the investigation.

"Other members include Democratic Reps. Zoe Lofgren, of California; Adam Schiff, of California; Pete Aguilar, of California; Stephanie Murphy, of Florida; Jamie Raskin, of Maryland; and Elaine Luria of Virginia," CNN reports.

When asked about House Republican Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy threatening GOP members of Congress, telling them he will strip their committee assignments if they accept membership to the Special Select Committee, Speaker Pelosi interrupted the reporter and declared she is not going to respond to any of McCarthy's remarks.

"It's not political so I'm not getting involved in any discussion that happens in the Republican caucus," Pelosi said.

UPDATE –
Rep. Cheney later issued a statement:"Congress is obligated to conduct a full investigation of the most serious attack on our Capitol since 1814. . . . What happened on January 6th can never happen again,.Those who are responsible for the attack need to be held accountable and this select committee will fulfill that responsibility in a professional, expeditious, and non-partisan manner.

"Our oath to the Constitution, our commitment to the rule of law, and the preservation of the peaceful transfer of power must always be above partisan politics."