Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House, selects members for a committee to investigate January 6’s riots. A new poll shows that most Americans think she is focusing too much on the wrong riots.

A third of Americans think Congress should hold hearings on last summer’s Black Lives Matter protests that sparked violent demonstrations. This is more than the 33% who believe Congress should probe the January 6 riot at the capitol.

Two out of three Americans who are likely to vote to say that Congress should investigate the “violent protests” that erupted in major and mid-sized American cities. Pelosi, on the other hand, is supported by less than half of Americans (49%) for an investigation into the D.C. riot that saw protesters marching against the 2020 presidential election results.

The support for a federal inquiry into the riots in U.S. cities following the death of George Floyd was broad and racial. “Sixty-seven percent (67%) of whites, 64% of black voters, 66% of Hispanics and 62% of other minorities think Congress should investigate the 2020 riots in U.S. cities,” reported Rasmussen Reports. “Seventy five percent (75%), 60% of Democrats, and 63% non-affiliated voters think Congress should investigate the violent protests of last year.”

The controversial Speaker’s select committee is on unstable ground. The Americans were split almost evenly on whether Congress should conduct another investigation into the Capitol riot. Pelosi and her co-Democrats call it an “insurrection”. 42% of respondents said that the event did not warrant a national inquiry, while 49% agreed. Only 21% said that Congress should not investigate the riots around the Black Lives Matter movement.

Property Claim Services estimates that the riots cost insurance companies between $1 billion and $2 billion. This estimate does not include the amount of damage that insurance companies are responsible for.

In addition to hundreds of civilians and police officers being injured, the riots left many dead and many others homeless. According to the Major Cities Chiefs Association, “Approximately 72% of major cities law enforcement agencies had officers injured” in last summer’s riots. One police agency reported that 462 officers sustained injuries during protests within its jurisdiction.

Tragically, at least 27 people died during the riots.

“Many elected officials of both parties and at all levels followed up, not by apologizing to their citizens for failing to uphold the law, but by accusing police officers of systemic racism, being in need of reform, reimagining and defunding,” said Sgt. Betsy Brantner Smith (Ret), a spokesperson for the National Police Association, in a statement.

The poll also found:

• 62% of voters believe politicians who downplayed the riots should be criticized, 11 points higher than those who believe politicians should be called out for minimizing the importance of the D.C. riot;
• 63% believe looters and rioters who broke the law last summer should be charged and criminally prosecuted;
• 65% say President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris should meet with the family of former St. Louis Police captain David Dorn, who was slain by rioters;
• 68% believe failing to prosecute “quality of life” crimes like shoplifting make criminals more likely to reoffend; and
• 76% of likely voters say young people ought to be taught to obey police officers’ lawful commands instead of resisting or fleeing arrest.

The results, which come from a poll released by Rasmussen and the National Police Association last Wednesday, follow a poll in April that found 55% of likely voters believe anti-police rhetoric makes police officers’ jobs more dangerous.