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A man calls on people to raid the building as Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as they try to storm the US Capitol in Washington D.C on January 6, 2021.
(Photo by Joseph Prezioso / AFP via Getty Images)
The Tucker Carlson-Led Effort to Whitewash the History of January 6 Will Fail
This effort must be seen for what it is: a disgrace.
Mar 11, 2023
Dominion Voting Systems has provided a public service for the American people.
As a result of its pending defamation lawsuit against Fox News, Dominion has laid bare the extraordinary con game that Fox carried out in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election and that continues today.
Fox elevated and affirmed for their millions of viewers former President Donald Trump’s Big Lie that the election was stolen from him by giving airtime to Trump’s team. But even as they put them on the air, Fox hosts and executives admitted privately that they knew they were airing lies and “insane” conspiracy theories.
The big three Fox propagandists, Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, and Laura Ingraham privately complained about their lying guests. But they never bothered to tell this to their viewers. Their texts, obtained by Dominion as part of the lawsuit, also reveal that some worried they would lose viewers if they actually told the truth.
Today, Trump continues to peddle his Big Lie — and so does Fox News.
Carlson, gifted with exclusive access to more than 40,000 hours of internal Capitol footage from the January 6 riot by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, is attempting to persuade people they should not believe what they saw with their own eyes. He has been airing cherry-picked portions of the January 6 videos to absurdly argue that the insurrectionist mob attack that led to the death and injury of Capitol police officers was little more than a “peaceful” protest of “sightseers.”
According to The New York Times, more than 150 officers from the Capitol Police, the Washington, DC Police Department, and other agencies suffered injuries as a result of the violence. A bipartisan Senate report found that at least seven people, including three police officers, lost their lives in connection with the attack.
A number of Senate Republicans have called Carlson out this week. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell criticized the way Carlson portrayed the insurrection, Minority Whip John Thune described January 6 as “an attack on the Capitol,” and Sen. Thom Tillis called Carlson’s claims “bulls — -.”
Hypocrisy abounds at Fox News. And, they are joined by Speaker McCarthy.
Many House Republicans, however, are supporting Carlson’s revisionist history. They include the Republican leaders: House Speaker McCarthy, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, and Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik.
In his Dominion deposition, Fox head Rupert Murdoch said he believed the 2020 presidential election was free, fair, and not stolen. Yet, Murdoch never pulled Fox back from promoting the Trump Big Lie. And, he currently silently sits by as Carlson tries to sell the lie that January 6 was a peaceful protest.
Hypocrisy abounds at Fox News. And, they are joined by Speaker McCarthy.
Shortly after January 6, McCarthy called the attackers “un-American,” and said that anyone who participated in the mob attack should go to jail. “You don’t understand what was transpiring at that moment and that time,” McCarthy told reporters shortly after the Capitol attack. “People brought ropes. When I got back into my building, I found the straps that they had. I don’t know if they’d come [to] try to kidnap somebody or whatever. But they were well planned for it.”
McCarthy knew perfectly well that Carlson would use his show to present an untrue version of what happened on January 6.
Carlson had earlier called January 6 a “footnote” in history and “forgettably minor.” Yet, that didn’t stop McCarthy from knowingly giving Carlson the opportunity to further a false narrative that is the complete opposite of what McCarthy described in 2021.
Meanwhile, the effort to rewrite history goes on.
McCarthy ally Rep. Barry Loudermilk is preparing to investigate the Jan. 6 investigators as part of a new House subcommittee, and House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene are planning to visit some of the January 6 rioters in jail.
House Republicans will fail.
Fox News and Carlson’s efforts to whitewash the January 6 insurrection will also fail and will go down in history as a national disgrace.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Fred Wertheimer
Fred Wertheimer is the founder and president of Democracy 21, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that seeks to promote government accountability and integrity.
big liedominiondominion lawsuitdominion voting systemsdonald trumpfox newsjanuary 6kevin mccarthytucker carlson
Dominion Voting Systems has provided a public service for the American people.
As a result of its pending defamation lawsuit against Fox News, Dominion has laid bare the extraordinary con game that Fox carried out in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election and that continues today.
Fox elevated and affirmed for their millions of viewers former President Donald Trump’s Big Lie that the election was stolen from him by giving airtime to Trump’s team. But even as they put them on the air, Fox hosts and executives admitted privately that they knew they were airing lies and “insane” conspiracy theories.
The big three Fox propagandists, Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, and Laura Ingraham privately complained about their lying guests. But they never bothered to tell this to their viewers. Their texts, obtained by Dominion as part of the lawsuit, also reveal that some worried they would lose viewers if they actually told the truth.
Today, Trump continues to peddle his Big Lie — and so does Fox News.
Carlson, gifted with exclusive access to more than 40,000 hours of internal Capitol footage from the January 6 riot by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, is attempting to persuade people they should not believe what they saw with their own eyes. He has been airing cherry-picked portions of the January 6 videos to absurdly argue that the insurrectionist mob attack that led to the death and injury of Capitol police officers was little more than a “peaceful” protest of “sightseers.”
According to The New York Times, more than 150 officers from the Capitol Police, the Washington, DC Police Department, and other agencies suffered injuries as a result of the violence. A bipartisan Senate report found that at least seven people, including three police officers, lost their lives in connection with the attack.
A number of Senate Republicans have called Carlson out this week. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell criticized the way Carlson portrayed the insurrection, Minority Whip John Thune described January 6 as “an attack on the Capitol,” and Sen. Thom Tillis called Carlson’s claims “bulls — -.”
Hypocrisy abounds at Fox News. And, they are joined by Speaker McCarthy.
Many House Republicans, however, are supporting Carlson’s revisionist history. They include the Republican leaders: House Speaker McCarthy, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, and Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik.
In his Dominion deposition, Fox head Rupert Murdoch said he believed the 2020 presidential election was free, fair, and not stolen. Yet, Murdoch never pulled Fox back from promoting the Trump Big Lie. And, he currently silently sits by as Carlson tries to sell the lie that January 6 was a peaceful protest.
Hypocrisy abounds at Fox News. And, they are joined by Speaker McCarthy.
Shortly after January 6, McCarthy called the attackers “un-American,” and said that anyone who participated in the mob attack should go to jail. “You don’t understand what was transpiring at that moment and that time,” McCarthy told reporters shortly after the Capitol attack. “People brought ropes. When I got back into my building, I found the straps that they had. I don’t know if they’d come [to] try to kidnap somebody or whatever. But they were well planned for it.”
McCarthy knew perfectly well that Carlson would use his show to present an untrue version of what happened on January 6.
Carlson had earlier called January 6 a “footnote” in history and “forgettably minor.” Yet, that didn’t stop McCarthy from knowingly giving Carlson the opportunity to further a false narrative that is the complete opposite of what McCarthy described in 2021.
Meanwhile, the effort to rewrite history goes on.
McCarthy ally Rep. Barry Loudermilk is preparing to investigate the Jan. 6 investigators as part of a new House subcommittee, and House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene are planning to visit some of the January 6 rioters in jail.
House Republicans will fail.
Fox News and Carlson’s efforts to whitewash the January 6 insurrection will also fail and will go down in history as a national disgrace.
Fred Wertheimer
Fred Wertheimer is the founder and president of Democracy 21, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that seeks to promote government accountability and integrity.
Dominion Voting Systems has provided a public service for the American people.
As a result of its pending defamation lawsuit against Fox News, Dominion has laid bare the extraordinary con game that Fox carried out in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election and that continues today.
Fox elevated and affirmed for their millions of viewers former President Donald Trump’s Big Lie that the election was stolen from him by giving airtime to Trump’s team. But even as they put them on the air, Fox hosts and executives admitted privately that they knew they were airing lies and “insane” conspiracy theories.
The big three Fox propagandists, Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, and Laura Ingraham privately complained about their lying guests. But they never bothered to tell this to their viewers. Their texts, obtained by Dominion as part of the lawsuit, also reveal that some worried they would lose viewers if they actually told the truth.
Today, Trump continues to peddle his Big Lie — and so does Fox News.
Carlson, gifted with exclusive access to more than 40,000 hours of internal Capitol footage from the January 6 riot by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, is attempting to persuade people they should not believe what they saw with their own eyes. He has been airing cherry-picked portions of the January 6 videos to absurdly argue that the insurrectionist mob attack that led to the death and injury of Capitol police officers was little more than a “peaceful” protest of “sightseers.”
According to The New York Times, more than 150 officers from the Capitol Police, the Washington, DC Police Department, and other agencies suffered injuries as a result of the violence. A bipartisan Senate report found that at least seven people, including three police officers, lost their lives in connection with the attack.
A number of Senate Republicans have called Carlson out this week. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell criticized the way Carlson portrayed the insurrection, Minority Whip John Thune described January 6 as “an attack on the Capitol,” and Sen. Thom Tillis called Carlson’s claims “bulls — -.”
Hypocrisy abounds at Fox News. And, they are joined by Speaker McCarthy.
Many House Republicans, however, are supporting Carlson’s revisionist history. They include the Republican leaders: House Speaker McCarthy, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, and Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik.
In his Dominion deposition, Fox head Rupert Murdoch said he believed the 2020 presidential election was free, fair, and not stolen. Yet, Murdoch never pulled Fox back from promoting the Trump Big Lie. And, he currently silently sits by as Carlson tries to sell the lie that January 6 was a peaceful protest.
Hypocrisy abounds at Fox News. And, they are joined by Speaker McCarthy.
Shortly after January 6, McCarthy called the attackers “un-American,” and said that anyone who participated in the mob attack should go to jail. “You don’t understand what was transpiring at that moment and that time,” McCarthy told reporters shortly after the Capitol attack. “People brought ropes. When I got back into my building, I found the straps that they had. I don’t know if they’d come [to] try to kidnap somebody or whatever. But they were well planned for it.”
McCarthy knew perfectly well that Carlson would use his show to present an untrue version of what happened on January 6.
Carlson had earlier called January 6 a “footnote” in history and “forgettably minor.” Yet, that didn’t stop McCarthy from knowingly giving Carlson the opportunity to further a false narrative that is the complete opposite of what McCarthy described in 2021.
Meanwhile, the effort to rewrite history goes on.
McCarthy ally Rep. Barry Loudermilk is preparing to investigate the Jan. 6 investigators as part of a new House subcommittee, and House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene are planning to visit some of the January 6 rioters in jail.
House Republicans will fail.
Fox News and Carlson’s efforts to whitewash the January 6 insurrection will also fail and will go down in history as a national disgrace.
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