'Definitely stupid': GOP lawmakers at war with each other over defending Jan. 6 rioters

Attempts by some Republican lawmakers to dismiss the actions of supporters of Donald Trump after they stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 are causing a rift within the GOP, leading some lawmakers to call out their colleagues to the press.

Led by Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Paul Gosar (R-AZ) and House Oversight Chair James Comer (R-KY) -- with the controversial Greene and Comer planning to visit some of the accused rioters in jail as they await their trial dates -- the Guardian is reporting that some GOP lawmakers are worried that the defenders of accused rioters will continue to haunt the party.

With some far-right lawmakers taking their lead from Fox News personality Tucker Carlson and trying to paint the Capitol invaders as "tourists" who just wandered in through open doors, some of their colleagues are calling them out publicly.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) told reporters, "It was a mistake, in my view, for Fox News to depict this in a way that’s completely at variance with what our chief law enforcement official here at the Capitol thinks,” while his Senate colleague Thom Tillis summed up the narrative of innocents being persecuted by the DOJ as "bulls--t."

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) chipped in with, "It’s a very dangerous thing to do, to suggest that attacking the Capitol of the United States is in any way acceptable and it’s anything other than a serious crime, against democracy and against our country,” before concluding, "But trying to normalize that behavior is dangerous and disgusting.”

According to the Guardian's Sam Levine, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's decision to provide Carlson with thousands of hours of footage of the Capitol attack has widened the inter-party divide.

One member of his caucus, Rep Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) bluntly stated, "It’s definitely stupid to keep talking about this."

He added, "I don’t really have a problem with making it all public. But if your message is then to try and convince people that nothing bad happened, then it’s just gonna make us look silly.”

You can read the Guardian report here.