Colbert Leaves out Critical Info and Downplays Staff Being Busted at Capitol Complex – Opinion

We reported on how staffers for the “Late Show” with Stephen Colbert were arrested and charged for being in an unauthorized area of the U.S. Capitol complex after they were thrown out trying to crash the Jan. 6 hearings earlier in the day, and how Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) were involved with the groups being in the building.

On his show on Monday, Colbert finally spoke about the arrests and tried to downplay the incident, joking that “some of my staff” had a “memorable” weekend. Colbert stated that they had been filming interviews with Congressmen for his show and were being invited in.

“After they’d finished their interviews, [my staffers] were doing some last-minute puppetry and jokey make-em-ups in a hallway, when Triumph and my folks were approached and detained by Capitol Police,” Colbert said. He claimed his people were “very professional.”

“The Capitol police were just doing their job, my staff was just doing their job, everyone was very professional, everyone was very calm,” the host continued. “My staffers were detained, processed, and released. A very unpleasant experience for my staff.” He treated it as nothing. “A lot of paperwork for the Capitol Police, but a fairly simple story.”

Colbert claimed it was just “first-degree puppetry,” that it wasn’t in the Capitol building, and then he deflected from the actions of his people by trying to blame President Donald Trump for the riot on Jan. 6.

Except Colbert leaves out some rather critical facts, including that his group had been tossed out earlier, were there wandering the hallways unescorted after hours for hours when they weren’t supposed to be there, and that the Capitol police were called because they were causing a disturbance, including banging on the doors of the offices of Republicans like House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Ca), Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), and Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO). Colbert left out some critical facts when explaining the circumstances to his audience, such as that they were taken into custody and charged with being within an unlicensed area.

“Responding officers observed seven individuals, unescorted and without Congressional ID, in a sixth-floor hallway,” the police said in a statement. “The building was closed to visitors, and these individuals were determined to be a part of a group that had been directed by the USCP to leave the building earlier in the day.”

According to the Capitol Police, they were accused of unlawful entry. “This is an active criminal investigation, and may result in additional criminal charges after consultation with the U.S. Attorney,” the USCP added.

According to reports, Schiff initially allowed them in and an assistant of Auchincloss let them back in after being told by police to leave.

Now, Democrats, including those on the Jan. 6 Committee, have been trying to rip apart Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-GA) for giving a tour of the Capitol complex on Jan. 5 — not the Capitol — and suggesting it was a “reconnaissance tour” for the rioters. They’ve done this, despite the fact that the Capitol Police said that there was no relation to the riot, the group never went into the Capitol or the Capitol tunnels, and nothing was suspicious about the group. They have not been arrested or allowed to return after-hours.

Loudermilk gave it to Schiff and the Committee.

“They’ve accused me of giving this family that came to my office for a meeting. We went with them for lunch. [and] they’re accusing us of that being a reconnaissance tour,” he said Saturday at the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s Road to Majority conference in Nashville.

“Adam Schiff, a member of the Jan. 6 committee, illegally brought Stephen Colbert’s comedy team into the Capitol and left them unescorted at night, and they were arrested,” he said. “So while they’re accusing me of giving illegal tours of the Capitol, they are giving illegal tours of the Capitol.”

George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley observed that Colbert didn’t make things easier for the defense in this case by his effort to downplay and joke about the incident.

It’s not generally a good idea to talk publicly about your case if you’re the defendant before it is concluded. However, this case is unlikely to result in the dismissal of any charges. We’ve already seen this in another case involving Timothy Hysom, a top aide to Auchincloss and who also worked for Schiff, who was referred by the Capitol Police for prosecution for multiple incidents of allegedly defacing posters outside the offices of Rep. Majorie Taylor Greene (R-GA). However, the DOJ decided not to prosecute.

Props to the Capitol Police for doing the right thing in both the Colbert and Hysom case, but we’ll have to see if the Colbert folks are prosecuted by the DOJ. I wouldn’t bet money on it.

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