It was one month ago when new House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) pledged he would release almost all of the 44,000 hours of security video taken by Capitol cameras on Jan. 6. But according to a CBS News report, that vow is far from reality.
In fact, a review determined that only 0.4% of the available footage is now on the public website.
The decision to release the video, which would take five years to watch if streamed 24 hours a day, was highly controversial. Republicans cited the “truth and transparency” that would come with having the public able to view what really transpired on Jan. 6.
Democrats, of course, wanted to keep the footage under wraps. They have a narrative of violent insurrection that would easily be dismantled if anyone could access what truly transpired.
Leftists declared the plan was simply the fruit of conspiracy theories, as if seeing the truth is something the public cannot handle.
CBS News reported that with the sheer volume of film and no set deadline, it is a daunting task to post it in its entirety. It noted “the intricate security configurations of closed-circuit surveillance footage are complicating efforts to upload large chunks of the video.”
One month after GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson announced House Republicans would post nearly all 44,000 hours of Jan. 6 Capitol security video to a public website, a CBS News review finds less than an estimated 0.4% of the footage has been uploaded. https://t.co/ZATZwr6zeh
— CBS News (@CBSNews) December 20, 2023
But Johnson committed to making the massive trove of evidence public. “When I ran for Speaker, I promised to make accessible to the American people the 44,000 hours of video from Capitol Hill security taken on January 6, 2021. Truth and transparency are critical.”
In a statement, the Republican said the release of the footage would allow the American public, those charged with crimes from that day, the media and public interest groups an unvarnished look at the truth.
This, Johnson said, was preferable to “having to rely upon the interpretation of a small group of government officials.”
From the outset it was determined that roughly 5% of the video would be withheld. This decision was due to “sensitive security information related to the building architecture.”
Some faces of individuals were to be blurred to avoid “retaliation.”
Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) had already made certain clips available from that day. They were to be viewed at the Capitol under predetermined security measures.
But House Republicans wanted more, and Johnson pledged full disclosure.
