“Maybe They Never Even Questioned Their Own Narrative”: Senator Lee Calls for Investigation Into Liz Chaney and Jan 6 Committee Over Capitol Riot Footage

Jo ShawNov 25, 2023

Minute Read

Liz Cheney, one of the two Republicans on the Jan 6 Committee tasked with probing the Capitol riots, recently posted a video on X (formerly Twitter). The clip, which was already public, was in response to the 90 hours of footage released by newly elected Speaker Mike Johnson. Following her post, Cheney encountered intense criticism and allegations of withholding footage as skepticism about the seriousness of the Capitol riots came to light.

Chaney’s Post Had Over 12 Million Views

Speaker Mike Johnson has recently made 90 hours of surveillance videos from Jan 6 publicly available. In response, Liz Chaney posted a previously available video edited by the New York Times on X, which garnered over 12 million views. “Here’s some January 6th video for you,” she posted, along with the video, which showed numerous clips of violence and rioting.

Clip Was “A Reality Check.”

MediaTouch responded with a post and their own headline, “Liz Cheney hits MAGA conspiracy theorists with a reality check about the horrors of Jan 6.”

People Left Like It Was a “Movie Theatre.”

However, the reaction to Chaney’s post was of fierce outcry when others started sharing their own clips of the event from the footage published on the committee website. Eric Abbenante, a comedian and filmmaker, posted, “If Jan 6 was an insurrection, why were people allowed to leave like the Capitol was a movie theater?” he asked in response to Chaney’s post and shared his own clip.

J6 Tapes Would Have Exonerated Every Person

He added, “Clearly confirms what we’ve said since Jan 6: The J6 tapes would have exonerated every person charged, and this is why these tapes weren’t released.” Eric Abbenante shared a clip of people walking slowly and peacefully from the Capitol.

Your J6 “Insurrection” Narrative Is Dead

Kyle Becker posted, “We already know about this, Liz. Your J6 “insurrection” narrative is dead.”

Rioter Fist Bumps Capitol Police

Image Credit: Thomas Hengge/Shutterstock.

Many clips showed Jan 6 “rioters” walking calmly around the Capitol. In another clip, a video was posted of a protester fist-bumping a Capitol police officer in a friendly gesture.

44,000 Hours to Be Posted

Following the commencement of House Speaker Mike Johnson’s release of clips from the Capitol riot, Republicans began expressing their approval on X. It is anticipated that approximately 44,000 hours of surveillance footage will be shared over the next several months.

He Won’t Lie, Stated Rep. Gaetz

Rep. Matt Gaetz praised Mike Johnson online for keeping his promise to release the tapes. In a post on X, he wrote, “HE WON’T LIE. If he says he is going to do something, he is going to do it.”

Accusations of Hiding Footage

Several other Republicans voiced their anger, with Senator Mike Lee leading the charge by calling for investigations into the Jan 6 Committee. He accused Chaney and other Democrats of concealing specific footage.

Questioning the Narrative

Lee posted on X, commenting on the clips that showed peaceful protestors moving their way through the Capitol: “Why didn’t Liz Cheney and Adam Kizinger ever refer to any of these tapes? Maybe they never looked for them. Maybe they never even questioned their own narrative.”

Deliberately Hiding Footage

Editorial credit: Christopher Halloran / Shutterstock.

Lee replied to Liz Chaney’s initial clip that the New York Times edited, stating, “Liz, we’ve seen footage like that a million times. You made sure we saw that—and nothing else. It’s the other stuff—what you deliberately hid from us—that we find so upsetting.”

J6 Committee Needs to Be Investigated

Senator Mike Lee urged an inquiry into the House Jan 6 Committee, alleging that the committee had “suppressed” evidence.

Was Footage Lost or Destroyed?

Lee posted, “We need to investigate the Jan 6 Committee.” In another post, Lee added, “Given the evidence they apparently suppressed, how much footage (and how many other records) do you think Nancy Pelosi and the J6 committee deliberately lost or destroyed?”

J6 Committee Was a Sham

Congressman Troy E. Nehls responded to Lee: “The J6 committee was a sham. I knew it then. Everyone knows it now. Let’s investigate the investigators.”

People Can Make Up Their Own Minds

Editorial credit: Allen J.M. Smith / Shutterstock.

Johnson had previously said his decision to release the footage was to “provide millions of Americans, criminal defendants, public interest organizations, and the media an ability to see for themselves what happened that day, rather than having to rely upon the interpretation of a small group of government officials.”

More Than 1,000 People Charged

Image Credit: CHRISTOPHER E ZIMMER/Shutterstock.

The Justice Department has filed charges against over 1,100 individuals in connection to the Capitol riots on Jan 6. Additionally, the Architect of the Capitol reported that rioters caused an estimated $1.5 million in damage to the Capitol building.

Mike Johnson Is Dangerous

Cheney had previously stated on a podcast called Politics is Everything that “One of the reasons why somebody like Mike Johnson is dangerous is because when you have elected Republicans who know better, elected Republicans who know the truth but yet will go along with the efforts to undermine our republic, the efforts, frankly, that Donald Trump undertook to overturn the election,”

The Measure of His Character

Johnson “was acting in ways that he knew to be wrong.” Cheney had declared, referencing his actions to help Trump in his attempts to overturn the 2020 election. “And, I think that the country, unfortunately, will come to see the measure of his character,” she added.

Johnson Wants Political Expedience

Editorial credit: Evan El-Amin / Shutterstock.

Chaney stated that she had worked closely with Johnson during her time in the White House. She said that at that time, she thought Johnson was willing “to set aside what he knew to be the rulings of the courts, the requirements of the Constitution, in order to placate Donald Trump, in order to gain praise from Donald Trump, for political expedience.”

It Was Not a “Normal Tourist Visit.”

People went online to add to the multitude of comments responding to Chaney’s post. “Panicking, Liz? Are you afraid that now people are going to see what happened BEFORE your cherry picked clips?” one user asked. Another user called Republicans against Trump, posted on X, “No matter what they say, It was not a ‘normal tourist visit.’”