🎙️ Voice is AI-generated. Inconsistencies may occur.
Former Representative Liz Cheney took to social media on Monday to confront Senator Mike Lee for sharing a new January 6 conspiracy theory.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson announced on Friday that his office would be releasing the complete archive of Capitol riot security footage, roughly 44,000 hours in total, after releasing an initial batch of footage totaling 90 hours.
Republicans, particularly supporters of former President Donald Trump aligned with the MAGA movement, have long called for the release of the footage, claiming the complete archive would confirm that January 6 was, in the words of Representative Andrew Clyde, "a normal tourist visit" and not a violent storming of the Capitol building in response to Trump's 2020 election loss to Joe Biden.
As the new footage was combed through, some conservatives honed in on a clip of a particular rioter appearing to flash an item toward a security camera. These commentators claimed that the item was a badge, lending supposed credence to their theory that the Capitol attack was spurred on by undercover federal agents. The theory has since been debunked, with the rioter in the clip, Kevin Lyons, being found to have been carrying a vape pen, not a badge.
On Sunday, Lee, a Republican from Utah, shared a post promoting the debunked theory and expressing agreement with it.
"I can't wait to ask FBI Director Christopher Wray about this at our next oversight hearing," Lee wrote on X, formerly Twitter. "I predict that, as always, his answers will be 97% information-free."
In response, Cheney chastised Lee and insisted that he should know better. Having previously served as Wyoming's at-large representative from 2017 to 2023, Cheney was one of only two Republicans on the House select committee that investigated the Capitol riot and has been outspoken in her opposition to conspiracy theories about the event and its true nature.
"You're a lawyer, Mike. You're capable of understanding the scores of J6 verdicts & rulings in our federal courts," Cheney wrote. "You didn't object to electors on J6 because you knew what Trump was doing was unconstitutional & you know what you're doing now is wrong."
Newsweek reached out to Lee's office via email for comment.
An X community note on Lee's original post also provided further context regarding Lyons, citing reporter Ryan J. Reilly and a Chicago Sun-Times report. Lyons was recently sentenced to four years in prison for his involvement in the Capitol riot and was found to have stolen a framed photo from then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office.
fairness meter
About the writer
Thomas Kika is a Newsweek weekend reporter based in upstate New York. His focus is reporting on crime and national ... Read more