The American Jewish Congress applauds Chairman Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS) and the January 6th Select Committee’s decision to appoint former Rep. Denver Riggleman (R-VA) as a senior advisor to the Select Committee. Riggleman, along with AJCongress President Jack Rosen, is the Co-Chair of AJCongress’ Advisory Board to Counter Domestic Terrorism and White Supremacy. Riggleman’s deep background in national security and intelligence will be a tremendous asset to both the select committee and the nation.
The American Jewish Congress is strongly supportive of the work of the select committee and we firmly support its goal of providing a comprehensive accounting of the factors that led to this unprecedented extremist attack on American values, democracy, and institutions. Further, we believe that this investigation provides a unique opportunity for the American people to learn about the antisemitic nature of the extremists who stormed the Capitol. No stone should be left unturned in seeking the truth about this assault.
We therefore strongly encourage the members of the select committee to investigate the underlying drivers of the insurrection that are rooted in antisemitism, white supremacy, and the QAnon conspiracy movement. We described these antisemitic drivers in a special report published soon after the January 6th attacks, specifically analyzing the multiple antisemitic images and social media chatter surrounding the days’ events. Our report made it clear that antisemitism was a feature, not a bug, of the mob on that horrific day.
We are confident that Rep. Riggleman will help the special committee to effectively investigate these crucial issues.
