The House Speaker provided footage of the Capitol attack to Fox News host Tucker Carlson, who has attempted to portray the riot as « peaceful chaos. »
As rioters stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, then House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy pleaded with Donald Trump to call his supporters off.
According to accounts of the conversation, McCarthy was furious at Trump and shocked by the unfolding violence, at one point exclaiming: « They’re trying to fucking kill me! »
But in the months and years that followed the riot, McCarthy’s position has dramatically shifted. As one of the most powerful Republicans in Congress, he has played a key role in seeking to downplay the event.
On Monday, that campaign reached a new level when Fox News host Tucker Carlson broadcast portions of Capitol surveillance footage handed to him by McCarthy after his election as speaker in the new GOP-controlled House.
The violent event, in which Trump supporters stormed the Capitol as Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election was being certified, has been the focus of several conspiracy theories.
Carlson has argued the footage « does not show an insurrection or a riot in progress », but rather « mostly peaceful chaos ». After seeing Carlson’s clips, Twitter CEO Elon Musk accused lawmakers of « misleading the public.
