Mar 7, 2023 - Politics & Policy

McCarthy defends releasing Jan. 6 footage to Tucker Carlson

Sri Ravipati

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy during summit at the Marriott Marquis on Tuesday, July 26, 2022 in Washington, DC — House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Photo: Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said Tuesday he doesn't regret giving video footage of the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol to Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

Driving the news: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and other Republicans have pushed back against Carlson's portrayal of the Capitol attack after McCarthy handed over 41,000 hours of footage exclusively to Fox last month.

Carlson, who has repeatedly questioned official accounts and downplayed the insurrection as "vandalism," aired the footage Monday on Fox. He characterized the deadly Capitol riot as "mostly peaceful chaos."

What he's saying: When asked by reporters on Tuesday whether he regretted giving Carlson the footage, McCarthy responded, "No."

"I said at the very beginning: transparency. What I wanted to produce for everyone was exactly what I said so people could look at it and see what went on that day."

Fox News, in a statement Tuesday, accused Dominion Voting Systems, the plaintiff in the case, of a "PR campaign to smear FOX News and trample on free speech and freedom of the press. We already know they will say and do anything to try to win this case, but to twist and even misattribute quotes to the highest levels of our company is truly beyond the pale."

Go deeper: 1/6 committee aide hits Tucker Carlson's surveillance footage access

Editor's note: This story has been updated with a statement from Fox News.

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McCarthy defends releasing Jan. 6 footage to Tucker Carlson

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