House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy Kevin Owen McCarthyHouse GOP leader tells members to quit spreading lies on riot, antifa GOP lawmakers told Trump takes some responsibility for Capitol riot Republicans gauge support for Trump impeachment MORE (R-Calif.) told members of his GOP conference on a call Monday that the riot at the Capitol was not caused by antifa, urging lawmakers not to further spread misinformation about the pro-Trump mob that stormed the House and Senate last week.
“McCarthy told all members on the call that he has been receiving FBI briefings and it is clear that antifa was not behind this,” one source familiar with the call said. “That it was in fact right-wing extremists and QAnon adherents, and he urged members to stop spreading false information to the contrary.”
McCarthy’s comments come in the wake of Rep. Matt Gaetz Matthew (Matt) GaetzHouse GOP leader tells members to quit spreading lies on riot, antifa Bottom line Most of 120 arrested or identified at Capitol riot were longtime Trump supporters: AP analysis MORE (R-Fla.), who made the unsubstantiated claim on the House floor that antifa was behind the violence that broke out at the Capitol on Wednesday after the riot took place in an attempt to delay the official count of Electoral College votes.
Other GOP lawmakers including Rep. Mo Brooks Morris (Mo) Jackson BrooksHouse GOP leader tells members to quit spreading lies on riot, antifa House Democrats unveil resolution to censure Rep. Mo Brooks over Capitol riots Watchdog asks for investigation into whether Rep. Mo Brooks incited riot with rally speech MORE (R-Ala.) doubled down on the claim on Twitter.
"Evidence growing that fascist ANTIFA orchestrated Capitol attack with clever mob control tactics," Brooks wrote at the start of a Twitter thread the day after the riot.
Please, don’t be like #FakeNewsMedia, don’t rush to judgment on assault on Capitol. Wait for investigation. All may not be (and likely is not) what appears. Evidence growing that fascist ANTIFA orchestrated Capitol attack with clever mob control tactics.
Evidence follows: — Mo Brooks (@RepMoBrooks) January 7, 2021
McCarthy told his members it was determined to be right-wing extremists and supporters of the QAnon conspiracy theory, which revolves around the idea that President Trump Donald TrumpHouse GOP leader tells members to quit spreading lies on riot, antifa DC attorney general says Trump Organization improperly paid K bill incurred during inauguration 70K QAnon Twitter accounts suspended in the wake of Capitol riot MORE is working to expose an elite group of Democrats and media who are running an international child trafficking ring and controlling the government to try to undermine the president.
The FBI said on Friday that it determined that no members of the left-wing movement antifa were involved in the storming of the Capitol.
“We have no indication of that at this time,” Washington Field Office assistant director Steven D'Antuono said when asked about any potential involvement of antifa last week.
Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Michael Sherwin separately also said last week that investigators had not seen evidence of antifa's presence.
ZakalwesChair on January 12nd, 2021 at 04:45 UTC »
Nobody of any substance is left on the Trump train. If you are still on board at this point, you are a fascist, a fucking moron, or both. You will only be associated with racism, brainwashing, and either believing or advancing the big lie that was so fucking stupid that nobody of ANY merit believed it. You will be fucking despised by generations of your children in textbook's and memes forever. You will be remembered as losers who fell for the dumbest most selfish piece of shit con man who every lived.
xstegosaurusx on January 12nd, 2021 at 04:12 UTC »
Really appreciating this pinch and a half of honesty from the same set of Republicans that have spent the last four years with fingers in their ears singing La La La while Trump ran roughshod over every convention, norm, and ethical standard a government might reasonably be expected to uphold.
McCarthy has been one of the worst and these last minute theatrics mean nothing. Disempower Republicans everywhere they operate, because they're a god damned cult.
Windigo4 on January 12nd, 2021 at 04:09 UTC »
Two thirds of the House Republicans voted to reject the Biden certification. So, he isn’t speaking on behalf of his caucus and potentially his days are numbered as their leader if he continues like this. The moderate pro-Democracy House Republicans are a small minority.