Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) could not come up with anything resembling a sensible answer when asked by Maria Bartiromo if he had any regrets about giving Tucker Carlson the 1/6 tapes.
Video:
Kevin McCarthy claims to be transparent on the 1/6 tapes, but then adds, “My goal here is transparency and we will slowly roll out to every individual news agency. They can come see the tapes as well.”
Kevin McCarthy has an odd definition of transparency. pic.twitter.com/K5487T5lhN
— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) March 12, 2023
McCarthy said, “I didn’t give him the tapes. I allowed him to come see them, just like an exclusive with anyone else. My goal here is transparency and we will slowly roll out to every individual news agency. They can come see the tapes as well. The first thing I found was the January 6 committee was not honest with us and it’s not 14,000 hours of tapes but 41,000 hours of tapes. Let everyone see them and bring their own judgment. The one thing I understand in America is we should have equal justice. What really raises the point with me? Why did I watch federal courts? Why did I watch cities burn and federal agencies and nobody arrested there? I think we should have equal justice across the country We should have transparency.”
Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) pointed out that McCarthy may have violated the First Amendment by giving Tucker Carlson exclusive access to government materials.
Video of Lofgren:
Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) suggests to @Acosta that McCarthy may have violated the 1st Amendment by giving 1/6 footage exclusively to Tucker Carlson, “The 1st Amendment doesn’t allow you just to pick a favorite political son if you’re the government and to deny other news outlets. ” pic.twitter.com/kPWZzW0gYm
— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) March 11, 2023
Lofgren said on CNN on Saturday, “The 1st Amendment doesn’t allow you just to pick a favorite political son if you’re the government and to deny other news outlets.”
There is no friendly outlet and few friendlier hosts for Kevin McCarthy than Maria Bartiromo and Kevin McCarthy still turned into a pile of mush who could not offer anything resembling a logical explanation for why he would give Tucker Carlson access to sensitive Capitol security footage.
Real transparency would involve turning the footage over to credible journalists and news networks, not a partisan propagandist who is attempting to rewrite the history of a domestic terror attack.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
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