Photo - Unidentified man taking shots of staircases, security points, and hallways while on tour given by Loudermilk on Jan, 5, 2021. Man in red MAGA hat near Loudermilk in background)
Continue reading for background on video.
Yesterday the Jan. 6 committee asked Loudermilk to voluntarily answer some questions about the tour he gave on Jan. 5th after releasing snippets of it to the public.
In response Loudermilk lashed out at CNN after the video's release and claimed the committee was trying to smear him.
The committee first reached out to Loudermilk last month. They indicated that they had evidence that "directly contradicts" previous claims by Republican lawmakers who said there were no tours, no large groups, no one with MAGA hats on" at the US Capitol complex on Jan. 5th.
Thus far, the committee has refrained from explicitly accusing Loudermilk of leading a "reconnaissance tour" as some Democratic lawmakers are calling it. But they do want to talk with him.
Because Loudermilk's story had shifted repeatedly the committee wants to ask him questions about his visitors - on a day when all Capitol tours had been cancelled because of the pandemic.
Committee chairman Bennie Thompson sent a letter to Loudermilk recently that said,
""We have surveillance footage that shows a tour of approximately ten individuals led by you to areas in the Rayburn, Longworth, and Cannon House Office Buildings, as well as the entrances to tunnels leading to the U.S. Capitol. Individuals on the tour photographed and recorded areas of the complex not typically of interest to tourists, including hallways, staircases, and security checkpoints." Etc.
Loudermilk didn't bother to respond to the letter but said yesterday - after being confronted with the video - that the Capitol Police had cleared him of any wrongdoing after they viewed the video footage.
Apparently, Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger is either a MAGA minion or just plain stupid. The select committee watched the same video and pointed out some really obvious red flags.
The video shows a man taking photos of tunnels, hallways and staircases within the Capitol complex. The rest of the group didn't appear interested in taking the same photos instead opting for normal visitor type photos of historic content.
The committee's clincher came with a video and audio of the same man taking photos marching on the Capitol on Jan. 6, voicing threats to Democratic lawmakers. Maybe Chief Manger was unaware of the second video showing one of the tour group the next day during the assault on the Capitol. His review doesn't sound like it was too serious.
The man's name hasn't been released by the committee who talked with him but didn't charge him with anything. Yet.
This whole incident is just another example of how far Republican lawmakers will go to protect Trump and his minions from justice.
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