Fox’s depiction of Jan. 6 Capitol riot a ‘mistake,’ McConnell says
Mitch McConnell on Tuesday said Fox News was wrong in its depiction of the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot when it aired of new footage of the rampage on Tucker Carlson’s program Monday night to portray it as a benign event.
“It was a mistake, in my view, for Fox News, to depict this in a way that’s completely at variance with what our chief law enforcement official here at the Capitol thinks,” the Senate GOP leader told reporters at his weekly press conference inside the building that was overtaken by supporters of former President Donald Trump.
“I want to associate myself entirely with the opinion of the chief of the Capitol police about what happened on Jan. 6,” he added, holding up a letter from US Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger.
Manger said Carlson “cherry-picked” video released to him by GOP Speaker Kevin McCarthy that led to “commentary that was filled with offensive and misleading conclusions about the January 6 attack.”
Carlson released unseen footage during his program on Monday that at times showed those who breached the Capitol walking alongside police officers.
“Taken as a whole the video record does not support the claim that January 6th was an insurrection,” Carlson charged on his highly rated program. “In fact, it demolishes that claim.”
When asked if McCarthy was wrong to release the tapes to Carlson, McConnell demurred.
“My concern is how it was depicted ... Clearly the chief of the Capitol police, in my view, correctly describes what most of us witnessed first hand on Jan. 6,” he reiterated.
It was a rare public rebuke of the powerhouse conservative cable network by a top GOP leader in Washington.
But some Republicans believe the full tapes put forth a different narrative that needs to be explored.
Kentucky GOP Rep. Thomas Massie, appearing on Carlson’s program, said the surveillance tapes changed his perception of what happened on Jan. 6.
“The tapes of people milling peacefully about ... I think it’s poppycock that they can’t be released because of some security issues ... They need to be released,” Massie said of the newly released footage.
This story was originally published March 7, 2023 at 4:30 PM with the headline "Fox’s depiction of Jan. 6 Capitol riot a ‘mistake,’ McConnell says."
