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Today, Rep. Gerald E. Connolly, Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, sent a letter to Speaker Mike Johnson, urging him to take meaningful action by acknowledging and condemning the violence that occurred on January 6th and barring those who tried to overthrow our government from the U.S. Capitol.  The letter follows breaking news that two masterminds of January 6th, Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio, returned to the Capitol complex today with President Trump’s self-proclaimed “Secretary of Retribution” Ivan Raiklin.

“On his first day in office, despite warnings from senior Republicans, President Trump issued a blanket pardon to the more than 1,500 people charged in the deadly January 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.  President Trump’s pardons are egregious and another attempt to rewrite history and cast the insurrection as a ‘day of love.’  Two masterminds of January 6th, Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio, returned to the Capitol complex today, raising significant questions about their intentions, including potential plans for retribution.  As the Speaker of the House, your office has a duty to ensure the protection and physical safety of your colleagues, as well as the staff and employees of the House of Representatives,” wrote Ranking Member Connolly.

On Wednesday, January 22, 2025, Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes visited the U.S. Capitol despite having been sentenced to 18 years for seditious conspiracy, or plotting to overthrow the government, raising concerns over his potential plans for retribution.

In addition to Mr. Rhodes, Enrique Tarrio, the leader of the Proud Boys and another key orchestrator of the insurrection, has also been freed from prison after being convicted of the same charge of plotting to overthrow the government.  After being pardoned by President Trump and released from his 22-year prison sentence, Mr. Tarrio told Alex Jones that members of the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack “need to be imprisoned,” adding, “They need to pay for what they did.”

The Ranking Members also cited safety concerns of law enforcement, including the U.S. Capitol Police, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and the Fraternal Order of Police.

“As the Speaker of the House, I call upon your office now to take meaningful action by acknowledging and condemning the violence that occurred on January 6th and assure our colleagues, staff, and the American public that those who sought to overthrow our government are not welcomed back to the Capitol through an open front door,” concluded Ranking Member Connolly.

Click here to read the letter.