MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell has announced he will be suing Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy over his decision to release footage of the January 6th attacks to Fox News in an exclusive deal.
The news of this deal came as a shock to many, including Lindell, when Tucker Carlson explained on his television program that he was given “unfettered access” to over 40,000 hours of surveillance footage from the Capitol on January 6th.
Associated Press/Manuel Balce Cenata | AP Photo/Richard Drew
Lindell is accusing McCarthy of breaking two constitutional provisions with this move: the equal protection clause and the first amendment. By releasing the footage only to Fox News and not to other outlets, such as Lindell’s own Lindell TV, is discrimination, says Lindell, and goes against the equal protection clause. He also believes McCarthy is infringing on the freedom of the press, as now Fox is the only outlet with access to the footage and is free to tell the public whatever they want— and free to withhold whatever they want as well.
Carlson is known to have spread conspiracy theories about the January 6th attacks, such as propagating the idea that ANTIFA led the attacks in disguise. Having unlimited and private access to this footage could allow Carlson to draw his own conclusions about the events of January 6th to release to his audience with no checks on their truthfulness.
Democrats have criticized McCarthy’s decision to release the footage to Carlson as well. Chuck Schumer, in a letter to Democrats, said that “by handpicking Tucker Carlson, Speaker McCarthy laid bare that this sham is simply about pandering to MAGA election deniers, not the truth.”
McCarthy has not yet spoken publicly about his decision.
