House Speaker Kevin McCarthy reportedly gave Tucker Carlson exclusive access to tens of thousands of hours of surveillance footage of the attack on the Capitol, a move that raised concerns among former members of the January 6 Committee that the video could be misused.
Adam Kinzinger, one of two Republicans serving on the committee, told CNN there were fears that excerpts would be taken out of context or even manipulated to support false claims. He said the concern is that producers will “cut off little pieces of it and say something it’s not.” Kinzinger suggested McCarthy was giving Carlson access to win his favor, given the Fox News anchor’s clout on the rights.
Rep. Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-MS) said that “it is difficult to overstate the potential safety risks of the irresponsible use of this material.”
“If indeed Speaker McCarthy allowed Tucker Carlson – a Fox anchor who regularly spreads misinformation and Putin’s poisonous propaganda – and his producers access to this sensitive footage, then he owes the American people an explanation as to why he did and what steps he took. he took to address the significant security issues at stake,” he said.
Axios reported Monday that McCarthy provided the footage to Carlson and his team, with plans to air excerpts in the coming weeks. Carlson has supported conspiracy theories surrounding the attack on the Capitol, including that it was a “false flag” operation to implicate Trump supporters.
On his Monday show, Carlson said, “January 6th is a transformative event in this country. It was used to change the country. There are about 44,000 hours, and we’ve given access to it. We believe that access is unlimited . We believe we have the right to see what we want to see.” He said his producers would be at the Capitol for about a week.
Carlson also said his producers are “trying to figure out what [the footage] means and how it may or may not contradict the story we’ve been told for over two years. We think it already contradicts that story in a way.”
Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger confirmed in a statement to The Washington Post that he gave McCarthy the footage. “If congressional leaders or oversight bodies ask for this stuff, we have no choice but to give it to them,” Manger said.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wrote in a letter to Democratic members that McCarthy’s move “represents a blatant breach of security that endangers the hard-working men and women of the US Capitol Police who on that fateful day protected our democracy defend.” endanger their own lives. “
Jeffries and Thompson noted that the Jan. 6 committee created logs to access the information, citing safety concerns for members, police officers and staff who were “targets of the violent riot.” Footage shown during the commission’s Jan. 6 hearings was released in consultation with Capitol Police.
Thompson and Rep. Joe Morelle will discuss the situation with members “as we address the potential national security implications of this reported breach,” Jeffries wrote.
A McCarthy spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A Fox News spokesperson referred to Carlson’s comments on his Monday show.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), one of McCarthy’s key supporters in his bid to become spokesperson, praised his move. “For everyone who was wondering if we were going to release the tapes. Please! I am very happy to be right again in my endorsement of Kevin McCarthy as our spokesman. Americans deserve to see the truth, not a one-sided narrative and an unfair two-tier justice system,” she wrote. Greene called those accused of the riot “political prisoners.”
Source: Deadline
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