House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Sunday that all footage gathered by the former House January 6th Committee regarding the protests at the Capitol Building on Jan. 6, 2021, will be released to every individual news outlet.
During an interview on “Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo,” McCarthy said the American people should be allowed to see allsurveillance footage from the Capitol Building that day and form their own opinions, rather than see only what the Democratic-controlled committee previously released.
His comments came amid some backlash after McCarthy allowed Fox News’ Tucker Carlson the opportunity to see tens of thousands of hours of never-before-seen video, some of which appeared to show moments of armed security peacefully escorting protesters throughout the Capitol building.
“I didn’t give [Carlson] the tapes, I allowed him to come see them, just like an exclusive with anybody else. My goal here is transparency,” McCarthy told host Bartiromo. “We will slowly roll out to every individual news agency [so] they could come see the tapes as well.”
In his remarks, McCarthy compared the protests at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, to the violent racial protests and others that escalated into attacks on structures and police in the preceding summer.
“Why did I watch cities burn … and nobody arrested there? I think we should have equal justice across this country, and we should have transparency,” the House speaker said. “I think transparency is best and allow the American public to see it all. And we need to have equal justice across this nation.”