Republican Rep. Clay Higgins accused the FBI of having a “ghost bus” of informants impersonating pro-Trump supporters during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack in Washington, D.C.
The remarks were made at a Homeland Security Committee hearing on Wednesday, Nov. 15. Clay drilled FBI Director Christopher Wray on whether the agency was involved in the insurrection — where the angry mob stormed the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
The Louisiana congressman pushed the debunked conspiracy theory that the FBI organized the insurrection, an idea that right-wing pundits have amplified.
“Can you confirm that the FBI had confidential human sources at the ‘Stop the Steal’ rally on January 6 here in D.C., sir?” Higgins asked.
“Congressman, as we’ve discussed before, I’m not going to get into where we have or have not used confidential human sources,” Wray responded.
Higgins cut him off and was firm on continuing his line of questioning. He pointed to a supposed FBI informant who claimed he marched with Proud Boys members that day and communicated with handlers. He asked Wray to confirm if the agency had “that sort of engagement with your own agents embedded into the crowd on January 6?”
“If you are asking whether the violence at the Capitol on January 6 was part of some operation orchestrated by FBI sources and or agents, the answer is emphatically not,” Wray said.
Then, Higgins asked the director about a “ghost bus,” a term that Wray said he was unfamiliar with. He went on a rant about the vehicle “used for secret purposes” while pointing to a photo of buses that he claimed were painted “completely white” and were the first to show up at DC’s Union Station the day of the attack.
“I have all this evidence. I’m showing you the tip of this iceberg,” Higgins said before being told his time was up by the Chairman.
Despite the objection, Higgins continued to make his point: “I note that all the members across the aisle have been granted time, and I object to my question being closed. This is a very significant hearing, Mr. Chairman. And these buses are nefarious in nature and were filled with FBI informants dressed as Trump supporters deployed onto our Capitol on January 6. Your day is coming, Mr. Wray.”
