Top House Democrat: Release of Jan. 6 Tapes to Tucker Carlson Constitutes ‘Egregious Security Breach’ For Capitol Police

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House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) put Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) on blast Tuesday for handing over 41,000 hours of security footage from the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol to Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

Jeffries wrote McCarthy a “dear colleague” letter and accused the Republican leader of endangering Capitol Police officers by giving Carlson exclusive access to the footage.

“I write with respect to public reports that extreme MAGA Republicans in the House have provided tens of thousands of hours of sensitive Capitol security footage to a FOX News personality who regularly peddles in conspiracy theories and Pro-Putin rhetoric,” Jeffries began, referring to Carlson.

“At present, we are working to confirm the precise nature of the video transfer, particularly as it relates to the events connected to the violent insurrection on January 6, 2021. The apparent transfer of video footage represents an egregious security breach that endangers the hardworking women and men of the United States Capitol Police, who valiantly defended our democracy with their lives at risk on that fateful day,” he continued, adding:

Over the past two years, the bipartisan Members of the January 6th Committee were able to diligently review the security footage in question, with numerous protocols in place to protect the safety of the Members, police officers and staff who were targeted during the violent insurrection. There is no indication that these same precautionary measures have been taken in connection with the transmission of the video footage at issue.

The Washington Post’s Jacqueline Alemany reported Tuesday on the steps taken by the House Jan. 6 committee to protect the privacy of police officers. Alemany noted on Twitter that committee members “had access to a special dedicated terminal installed in the cmte office that had password- protected access to the volume of footage. The cmte also asked for permission from USCP before they used any of the footage in public hearings.”

Carlson has been a leading figure on the hard right promoting the idea that the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol was an inside job meant to act as a pretext to weaponize federal law enforcement against Trump supporters. Critics claim that such conspiracy theories have led to an increase in threats and targeting of law enforcement officials.

“The U.S. government has in fact launched a new war on terror, but it’s not against al Qaeda, it’s against American citizens. Nothing like this has ever happened in the history of our country. This is an attack on core civil liberties and it’s essential that you know what’s happening and that you resist it,” Carlson said in October 2021 while promoting his highly controversial series Patriot Purge.