The “Twitter Files” marks a good example of how U.S. Capitol security footage from Jan. 6, 2021, could be released to the public, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) said on Sunday.
The House Speaker joined Fox News’s Maria Bartiromo to discuss the matter during an episode of “Sunday Morning Futures.” McCarthy said he plans to release the tapes due to the “politicization” he believes has been stoked by former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and the January 6 Committee.
The speaker brought up Elon Musk’s recently acquired Twitter, which granted a group of independent journalists the ability to view numerous internal communications that they have reported on by posting threads titled, “Twitter Files.”
“The best way to handle this is exactly the way Elon Musk [did]: Just put all the information out there and let people see what is truth and what is not,” McCarthy said. “So, the best way to do that is to release the tapes. People can know for themselves instead of picking and choosing what views they want people to see.”
.@SpeakerMcCarthy: I don’t know what’s in the January 6 tapes, but I think they need to be released so the people can see for themselves what transpired. pic.twitter.com/XXUnM7pUWD
— The Dirty Truth (Josh) (@AKA_RealDirty) January 15, 2023
The latest “Twitter Files” drop reportedly showcasing how “the pharmaceutical industry lobbied social media to shape content.”
Camera systems captured a total of over 14,000 hours of footage between noon and 8 p.m. during the protests at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, according to Capitol police.
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) claims the recordings “would give more full context to that day rather than the cherry-picked moments the January 6 Committee tried to use to inflame and further divide our country.”
While speaking with CNN, Gaetz said the footage could prove the innocence of some of the Jan. 6 defendants. He additionally dismissed allegations that making the tapes transparent pose a security threat.
“I think that it’s an argument made by the Department of Justice because they don’t want to expose the extent to which there might have been federal assets or agents enhancing criminal acuity,” he said.
.@RepMattGaetz Responds To Claim That Releasing The 14k Hours Of 1/6 Footage Would Jeopardize Security
"I think that it's an argument made by the DOJ because they don't want to expose the extent to which there might have been federal assets or agents enhancing criminal acuity." pic.twitter.com/Jv1Fycyfyz
— The Columbia Bugle 🇺🇸 (@ColumbiaBugle) January 15, 2023
McCarthy reportedly said last week he wants to be “very thoughtful” with unveiling the Capitol security footage but promised he is “engaged to do that.”
