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- House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy issued a threat to his members on Wednesday, according to reports.
- McCarthy targeted anyone who signs onto the Democrats' special committee on Jan. 6.
- Republicans who join will lose their committee assignments, according to CNN and Punchbowl News.
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy threatened his Republican members in a closed door meeting on Wednesday, according to Punchbowl News and CNN.
Should any House Republicans join Speaker Nancy Pelosi's select committee investigating the January 6 insurrection, "they better be ready to get all their committee assignments from her," according to Punchbowl's Thursday morning newsletter.
CNN Special Correspondent Jamie Gangel also reported that McCarthy threatened to strip them of their committee assignments if they accept an offer to join.
-Ana Cabrera (@AnaCabrera) July 1, 2021
Getting stripped of committee assignments is a serious blow to any member of Congress, leaving them with effectively no influence beyond their one vote out of 435 when legislation finally reaches the floor.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia had her committee assignments removed shortly after she arrived on Capitol Hill over past anti-Semitic and conspiratorial comments, despite most of her fellow Republicans defending her and warning of a slippery slope.
It has also happened to former Republican Rep. Steve King of Iowa after years of racist comments and one particular white supremacist remark in 2019, where he told The New York Times "White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization - how did that language become offensive?"
McCarthy, a California lawmaker who has been in Congress since 2007, has promoted former President Donald Trump's false claims about the election and aligned himself with the pro-Trump forces in his caucus.
Although McCarthy's reported threat was broad, the only House Republicans being considered for spots on the Democrats' select committee are Reps. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois and Liz Cheney of Wyoming, who are strident critics of Trump's lies about the election.
Cheney was ousted from House GOP leadership in May after raising concerns about her colleagues' dismissal of how serious the Capitol siege was, and has subsequently said she refuses to whitewash January 6.
She was replaced by a staunch Trump ally, Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, who has been far less critical of the insurrection and the former president's role in inciting it.
McCarthy's office did not immediately reply to Insider's request for comment.
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