House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) has reportedly offered Fox News host Tucker Carlson access to thousands of hours of video footage documenting the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, raising eyebrows as some have cited security concerns over the agreement.
McCarthy agreed to hand over 41,000 hours of surveillance footage to Carlson’s crew, which includes camera access from several angles on the Capitol grounds during the riot, according to Axios. Excerpts from the footage are expected to be aired on Carlson’s show over the coming weeks.
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“There was never any legitimate reason for this footage to remain secret,” Carlson told the outlet. “If there was ever a question that’s in the public’s interest to know, it’s what actually happened on Jan. 6. By definition, this video will reveal it. It’s impossible for me to understand why any honest person would be bothered by that.”
Carlson has long questioned reports of the Jan. 6 attack, often downplaying the incident as “vandalism.” The Fox News host has repeatedly urged lawmakers to release the footage of the attack, first engaging in talks with McCarthy in early February to gain access.
The newly elected House speaker previously told reporters that “the American public should actually see” what happened during the Capitol riot rather than depending on the report from the Jan. 6 committee, which, up until this point, is the only group that has had access to the footage.
The deal between McCarthy and Carlson marks the latest example of a long-used strategy by the House speaker to gain favor with conservative outlets. In recent years, McCarthy has sought to give some news outlets access to exclusive materials as a way to get positive coverage.
That could be the same strategy at play here as McCarthy has been a target of Carlson’s reporting after the Fox News host hit out against the California Republican for living in an expensive apartment in Washington and for being a “puppet of the Democratic Party.”
Some former staffers of the Jan. 6 committee have voiced concerns about giving access to video footage of the Capitol riot, arguing it poses security concerns.
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“When the January 6th Select Committee obtained access to U.S. Capitol Police video footage, it was treated with great sensitivity given concerns about the security of lawmakers, staff, and the Capitol complex,” Tim Mulvey, a former senior staffer of the Jan. 6 panel, told Axios. “Access was limited to members and a small handful of investigators and senior staff, and the public use of any footage was coordinated in advance with Capitol Police. It’s hard to overstate the potential security risks if this material were used irresponsibly.”
A spokesperson for McCarthy pushed back on that assertion, arguing “the security of the Capitol” would be kept “separate from partisan political interests.”
