House Homeland Security Committee Chair Rep. Bennie Thompson has said Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) could be put on the no-fly list if they're found liable for inciting the riot at the Capitol that left five people dead.
Thompson, a Democrat representing Mississippi's 2nd congressional district, told SiriusXM's The Joe Madison Show on Monday that there would be no exception for elected officials who were found responsible for the deadly incident.
He told host Joe Madison there was "no question about" placing the Capitol rioters on the domestic no-fly list, though there is some debate about how quickly this could be done.
"First of all, these folks, in my opinion, can be classified as domestic terrorists because of the actions they participated in on Wednesday. Now under normal circumstances international terrorists are out on no-fly lists," Thompson said.
"These are domestic terroristssame thing. A terrorist is a terrorist, no matter who you are."
Madison went on to ask Thompson what that would mean for Cruz and Hawley if they were found in some way liable for the riot. The discussion also focused on Republican Congresswoman Lauren Boebert amid calls for her resignation.
"If these folks are found liable, should they be on the no-fly list?" Madison asked.
"Well, there's no question about it," Thompson said. "There's no exemption for being put on the no-fly list."
"Even a member of Congress that commits a crime, you know, they expel from the body. There are ethics charges that can be brought against those individuals. And people are looking at all this," Thompson said.
"What Hawley did and what Cruz did was horrible. Whatthe new member from Colorado [Boebert], who basically tweeted directions and everything that was going onthat's not something you do.
"Somebody said, well, she's new. Well, the point is, ignorance of the law is no excuse. So if you don't know, you've still done something wrong." On Thursday, Thompson urged the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and FBI to place the Capitol rioters on the no-fly list.
"Given the heinous domestic terrorist attack on the U.S. Capitol yesterday, I am urging the Transportation Security Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to use their authorities to add the names of all identified individuals involved in the attack to the federal no-fly list and keep them off planes," he said.