Three prominent Fox News anchors sent distressed text messages to Mark Meadows, the last chief of staff to President Donald J. Trump, on Jan. 6, asking the president to take the riot seriously and make efforts to stop it. .
The lyrics were made public Monday, shortly before the House committee scrutinizing the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol voted 9-0 to recommend that Mr. Meadows be charged with contempt of Congress. Representative Liz Cheney, Republican from Wyoming, read the text messages out loud.
The texts, part of a treasure trove of 9,000 documents Mr. Meadows before he stopped cooperating with the investigation were sent to the former White House chief of staff by Laura Ingraham, the host of the nighttime show “The Ingraham Angle”; Sean Hannity, a former prime-time presenter who once appeared on stage with Mr. Trump at a campaign rally; and Brian Kilmeade, host of the morning show ‘Fox & Friends’.
“Mark, the president needs to tell the people in the Capitol to go home,” Ms. Ingraham wrote. “This hurts us all. He is destroying his legacy.”
Mr Kilmeade echoed that concern and texted Mr Meadows, ‘Please get him on TV. Destroy everything you have achieved.”
Understand the US Capitol Riots
On January 6, 2021, a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol.
Sean Hannity texted, “Can he make a statement? Ask people to leave the Capitol.”
Ms Ingraham’s text contrasted with what she said on her Fox News program in the hours after the attack, when she promoted the false theory that members of Antifa were involved.
“From a chaotic Washington tonight, earlier today the Capitol was besieged by people who can only be described as opposed to the MAGA movement,” Ms Ingraham said in the Jan. 6 episode. “Now they probably weren’t all Trump supporters, and there are some reports of antifa sympathizers being strewn through the crowd.”
Ms Ingraham went on to cite “legitimate concerns about the way these elections were held”, adding that any dissatisfaction with the vote should not have led to violence.
Mr. Hannity, a former informal adviser to Mr. Trump, condemned the attack, saying at the top of his Jan. 6 show, “Today’s perpetrators must be arrested and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” He also said the nation must do more to protect law enforcement and political representatives.
About who was responsible, Mr Hannity said: “I don’t care if the radical left, radical right – I don’t know who they are. They are not people I would support. So how were officials unprepared? We must answer that question. How did they make it possible for the Capitol to be breached in less than a few minutes?’
He also brought up the 2020 election, the results of which had been questioned by Mr Trump and his supporters in the weeks before the riots, although there was no evidence of widespread fraud.
“Our election was, quite frankly, a train accident,” said Mr Hannity. According to Gallup, eighty-three percent of Republicans and millions of others do not trust these election results. You can’t just snap your finger and hope it goes away.”
Fox News representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In the 11 months since the attack, Fox News morning and primetime hosts have often downplayed the events of January 6, with some comparing it to the violence during the widespread protests against racism and police brutality in the summer of 2020.
Understand the claim of Executive Privilege in the January 6th application
An important issue that has not yet been tested. Donald Trump’s power as a former president to conceal information from his White House has become a focal point in the House investigation into the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. Amid an attempt by Mr. Trump to keep personal information secret and the indictment of Stephen K. Bannon for contempt of Congress, here’s a breakdown of executive powers:
Last month, Tucker Carlson, the Fox News host with the largest audience, produced a three-part documentary, “Patriot Purge,” for the Fox Nation streaming platform falsely claiming the January 6 attack was a “false flag.” operation intended to demonize the political right.
More than 500 people have been arrested in connection with the pro-Trump riots in the Capitol. mr. Carlson falsely claimed in the documentary that “Jan. 6 is being used as a pretext to deprive millions of Americans – unfavorable Americans – of their basic constitutional rights.”
Chris Wallace, the longtime host, resigned from Fox News on Sunday after 18 years to take a job at DailyExpertNews. Before his abrupt departure, he expressed his concerns about the documentary in talks with management.
Two longtime Fox News contributors, conservative commentators Jonah Goldberg and Stephen Hayes, quit last month in protest at the Carlson special, calling it “totally outrageous” and saying it “will lead to violence.”