On Wednesday (February 22), Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) weighed in on the revelation House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA.) gave Fox News host Tucker Carlson 41,000 hours of January 6 footage.
In a letter to Senate Democrats, Schumer stressed the risks McCarthy exposed the Capitol to by releasing the footage, comparing it to 9/11 when he wrote McCarthy is “needlessly exposing the Capitol complex to one of the worst security risks since 9/11.”
He described the footage McCarthy gave to Fox News as a “treasure trove of closely held information” about how the Capitol is protected, asserting that releasing it publicly “would compromise the safety of the Legislative Branch” by allowing anyone wanting to attack the Capitol to learn how it’s safeguarded.
Every Democrat who has criticized Speaker McCarthy’s actions has highlighted the security risk in sharing thousands of hours of footage with no guard rails.
The New York Democrat went on to insist that McCarthy’s actions handing “disingenuous” Carlson such information is a “grave mistake” that would “weaken… democracy.”
By “hand picking” Carlson, Schumer argues McCarthy demonstrated that he is more interested in “pandering to MAGA election deniers” than exposing the truth, adding that Carlson will cherry-pick clips that “twist the facts to sow doubt of what happened” during the insurrection.
Schumer also suggested McCarthy’s release of the footage was likely one of the contingencies he agreed to from MAGA House Representatives to secure their Speaker vote.
McCarthy is yet to respond to any criticism or reveal his reasoning for sharing the footage.
