Tucker Carlson granted access to 41,000 hours of Jan. 6 surveillance footage

Fox News' Tucker Carlson has been granted exclusive access to 41,000 hours of Capitol surveillance footage from the Jan. 6 riot, according to sources close to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Carlson's television producers were on Capitol Hill last week to start combing through the footage, which includes multiple camera angles from all over the Capitol grounds, and excerpts will be aired in the coming weeks.

The move is significant given Carlson's previous remarks about the riot, repeatedly questioning official accounts of what happened. Now, with access to the footage, Carlson and his team have access massive trove of raw material that has the potential to cast new light on the events of Jan. 6, Axios reported.

When asked about the footage, Carlson told sources, "there was never any legitimate reason for this footage to remain secret." He went on to say, "If there was ever a question that's in the public's interest to know, it's what actually happened on January 6. By definition, this video will reveal it. It's impossible for me to understand why any honest person would be bothered by that."

It's worth noting that the Jan. 6 committee has already played numerous excerpts of the footage at last year's hearings, which were both captivating and emotional. The footage showed the chaos that took place as rioters broke into the Capitol building and made their way through the halls, endangering the lives of lawmakers and staff.

The process with Carlson reportedly started in early February, with a communication between the show and a McCarthy representative. While the archive was previously reported to be 14,000 hours, sources say it's now much larger.

This move follows McCarthy's comments last month in Statuary Hall, where he said that he believes "the American public should actually see all [that] happened instead of a report that's written [on] a political basis."

Carlson, who has previously argued that there is a "regime of secrecy and deceit" in Washington, is also pushing for the footage to be released to the public.

Given the contentious political climate and the ongoing investigation into the events of Jan. 6, the release of the footage to the public is likely to be met with both anticipation and anxiety. Carlson's commentary and analysis of the footage could have a significant impact on the public's understanding of what happened that day.