Republicans slam Tucker Carlson after the Fox News host aired previously unseen Capitol riot footage
Tucker Carlson is in the firing line after the Fox News host aired previously unseen footage of the January 6 Capitol riot.
Carlson showed the video on his Monday night show, arguing it “does not show an insurrection or a riot in progress”, but rather “mostly peaceful chaos”.
Top congressional Republican, Kevin McCarthy gave the show exclusive access to the footage, but other GOP lawmakers say the Fox host mischaracterised the raid on Congress.
The conservative news channel, owned by Rupert Murdoch, has long insisted other media outlets exaggerated the violence at the Capitol on 6 January.
On this day, Trump supporters stormed the legislative complex as Joe Biden’s presidential victory was being certified.
Carlson also suggested, without evidence, that government agents could have instigated the riot.
As the 45-minute segment continue, Carlson says the video shows that while a minority of protesters did commit violence, most were “sightseers”.
Criticism of the segment has come from both sides of the aisle in Washington as well as the head of the Capitol police, and the family of a police officer whose death was mentioned in the show.
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell believes it was a “mistake” for Fox News to depict the incident in this way.
This prompted House Speaker McCarthy to hit back at McConnell and defend Tucker Carlson’s report.
Around 1,000 people have been arrested so far in connection with the riot, most of them charged with entering or remaining in a restricted federal building.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer says Fox News needs to reprimand Carlson.
