Last Updated on September 7, 2023
GOP Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy has indicated that he will finally make good on his speakership campaign promise to release J6 footage to the American People, after refusing to do so for months. McCarthy’s apparent change of heart comes on the heels of immense pressure from America First voters and Reps. like Matt Gaetz, who spoke exclusively with National File on the issue.
Recent reports have indicated that Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) is planning to release U.S. Capitol security and body camera footage taken during the J6 demonstrations to the public. Public access will apparently not come by way of one large-scale release but will begin with the release of footage that’s been requested by journalists and J6 defendants, with additional hours of footage being published to a public access archive over the course of time.
More than 41,000 hours of J6 footage, which many believe will blow the federal government’s J6 narrative out of the water when released, are in the possession of the U.S. House of Representatives led by Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who reportedly has the power to unilaterally release all of it at any time.
McCarthy promised during his speakership campaign to release the footage but up until now has refused to do so, aside from providing limited access to corporate media.
The sudden change in McCarthy’s J6 footage policy comes amid widespread blowback against his speakership, in which he has failed to deliver on numerous campaign promises, sparking calls for Representatives to replace him by way of the Motion to Vacate, which was forced back into the House Rules package earlier this year by conservatives in an effort to hold McCarthy accountable.
Last week, Freedom Caucus Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) blasted McCarthy in a social media post on several points, including his broken promise to release J6 footage, writing that House conservatives “are going to have to seize the initiative and make some changes” if McCarthy’s leadership does not rapidly improve.
Gaetz spoke with National File on reports that McCarthy is finally planning to release the J6 footage, saying that while the development is “productive”, the Speaker has a long way to go.
“It’s productive that McCarthy has signaled a change in position on the J6 tapes after my social media post,” Rep. Gaetz exclusively told National File.
“But we will measure success by actions, not promises.”
“And there is much more to do,” Gaetz added. “This may be moving the ball one yard. Ninety-nine to go,” he said.
