Fox News host Tucker Carlson aired newly released footage on his show of the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Part of the footage shows Capitol Police officers walking alongside Jacob Chansley, the notorious “QAnon Shaman,” as he made his way towards the U.S. Senate floor.
The exclusive footage is part of the 41,000 hours of Jan. 6 security tapes House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) handed to Carlson in February.
While Carlson described the footage as evidence of “mostly peaceful chaos,” others on Capitol Hill disagree. Sen. Tom Tillis (R-NC) equated Carlson’s framing of Jan. 6 to media coverage of Kenosha riots, calling it “inexcusable”. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) also criticized the footage as promoting lies.
Previously aired footage documented the violence that occurred that day, resulting in 140 injured police officers and the deaths of at least four people.
Prosecutors have stated that Capitol Police officers tried to tell those who illegally entered the Capitol building to leave. Moreover some police had testified they felt outnumbered and feared escalating the violence by engaging with the mob.
The entirety of the Jan. 6 footage has not been revealed to the public yet. Speaker McCarthy has said he intends to make it more widely available.