Pelosi could announce creation of a select committee to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection

WASHINGTON – Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, told Democratic House members Tuesday she will create a select committee to probe the January 6 attack and insurrection, a source familiar told USA TODAY.  

After USA TODAY and several other outlets reported on her announcement, Pelosi's spokesman, Drew Hammill, later tweeted, "Clarification on tonight's meeting of the Steering and Policy Committee. Speaker Pelosi told Members she plans to announce WHETHER she will create a select committee THIS WEEK. Her preference continues to be a bipartisan commission which Senate Republicans are blocking."

Details of a select committee are not yet known. It would not require Republican support to establish, but they could still have some representation on the committee.

The announcement comes nearly one month after Senate Republicans blocked a bipartisan commission proposed to study the U.S. Capitol riot. 

More:Senate Republicans block commission to study Capitol riot of Jan. 6

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That legislation had passed successfully through the House, and Pelosi had said that she would explore other avenues to investigate the deadly attack after its failure to advance in the Senate.

The select committee was one of several options the Speaker had been considering after the Senate GOP blocked the commission legislation.

The prospective panels comes amidst a heightened political atmosphere on Capitol Hill — one that has been especially contentious in the aftermath of January 6.

More:A culture war has been brewing at the Capitol for years. Now it's at a boiling point.

Congressional Democrats have accused Republicans of attempting to diminish the events of that day.

A pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol on January 6, attacked police officers and ransacked the building in an attempt to stop Electoral College certification in favor of President Joe Biden.

On the other side of the aisle, Republicans have called an additional commission or committee partisan and unnecessary as the Justice Department is already prosecuting more than 445 suspects in the attack, and more arrests are expected. They say Democrats are using this for political gain.

Former President Donald Trump's rhetoric and role in the events leading up to the insurrection attempt will likely be a focus of the panel.

The House swiftly impeached Trump Jan. 13, charging him with inciting the insurrection the week before. In the trial, senators voted to acquit him.

The committee could look into actions of some current and former House members, Senators, the lack of preparedness on Capitol Hill, and much more.

Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., who in part lost her leadership in the House GOP for supporting the commission to investigate that date, told reporters Tuesday that she wishes the Senate would have "passed a bipartisan commission, but since that didn't happen, I think it's very important for us to have something else."

More:Liz Cheney has been removed as House GOP Conference chair. What does the chair do?

This story is breaking and will be updated.