Nunes on Jan. 6 riot: Pelosi is 'mayor' of the Capitol, 'she should take responsibility'

California Republican Rep. Devin Nunes said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is the "mayor" of the U.S. Capitol and that "she should take responsibility" for the lack of National Guard troops at the Capitol complex ahead of the Jan. 6 riot.

"I know from that morning, I spoke to several Capitol Police officers on the morning of the 6th that they were very concerned. So at the end of the day, she's the mayor of the Capitol. She should take responsibility," Nunes said during an interview on Fox News. "She clearly doesn't want to answer what happened and what her roles and responsibilities or her staff were on that day."

During the course of the impeachment trial against former President Trump, the House impeachment managers said the Jan. 6 violence at the Capitol was "foreseeable." 

Nunes and other Republican lawmakers including Illinois Republican Rep. Rodney Davis wrote Pelosi a letter on Monday with questions related to security measures taken in advance of the Jan. 6 riot.

"When then-Chief Sund made a request for National Guard support on January 4th, why was that request denied?" the lawmakers wrote.

Just the News has asked Pelosi's office if the speaker was briefed on threats of violence ahead of the Jan. 6 rally but her office has not responded.

Nunes, ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, said the 7-foot-tall fence surrounding the U.S. Capitol is no longer needed.

"They [National Guard troops] don't need to be at the U.S. Capitol. The fact of the matter is the guard could have been called in. Fences should have been put up before January 6, we had the intelligence in order to do that. So the FBI knew. The FBI relayed it to the Capitol Police. But now moving forward, what I can tell you is I haven't seen any credible information whatsoever that we would need all the fencing and all the guardsmen that are still there. They need to go home," said Nunes, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee.