January 6 committee requests testimony from a Republican lawmaker who led a tour of the Capitol complex the day before the attack

• The Jan. 6 committee asked Rep. Barry Loudermilk to testify about a tour he gave a day before the Capitol attack.
• The committee said it has evidence contradicting Republican claims that no such tours took place.

The House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, Capitol siege has summoned Republican Rep. Barry Loudermilk to testify about a tour he allegedly gave the day before the attack took place.

In the days following the attack, Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherill of New Jersey and more than 30 of her colleagues sent a letter to Capitol Police asking for an investigation into "suspicious behavior and access given to visitors" the day before the attack. She cited a seeming resemblance between the visitors and the rioters who attacked the complex the following day.

"The visitors encountered by some of the Members of Congress on this letter appeared to be associated with the rally at the White House the following day," Sherill wrote on January 12, 2021. "Members of the group that attacked the Capitol seemed to have an unusually detailed knowledge of the layout of the Capitol Complex."

Sherill had described the tours as being for the purposes of "reconnaissance" during a Facebook Live event the day before.

Republicans on the Committee on House Administration later said they had reviewed security camera footage covering the Capitol complex in the days before the attack, and denied that there had been any tours.

"There were no tours, no large groups, no one with MAGA hats on," a Republican aide anonymously told The Hill. "There's nothing in there remotely fitting the depiction in Mikie Sherrill's letter."

And Loudermilk led an ethics complaint against the Democrats who had signed onto Sherill's letter, calling the allegations "morally reprehensible and a stain on this institution."

But the committee now says they've uncovered new evidence that Loudermilk led such a tour, and are asking him to testify before the committee next week.

"If it would be preferable to hold this meeting with you in your home district, we would also be glad to explore travel arrangements to facilitate that option," wrote Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi and Republican Re. Liz Cheney of Wyoming in the letter to Loudermilk.

Loudermilk and Republican Rep. Rodney Davis of Illinois — both of whom serve together on the administration committee — issued a statement on Thursday disclosing that the Loudermilk had led "a constituent family with young children" the day before the riot, but said they did not enter the Capitol, only House office buildings.

"We call on Capitol Police to release the tapes," the duo said.

The letter comes after the committee issued subpoenas to five other Republican members of Congress, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. Loudermilk could also face a subpoena — which would compel him to testify — should he reject the committee's request to voluntarily testify.