Fox News host Tucker Carlson on Wednesday claimed that the media and federal authorities were unfairly protecting the Capitol Police officer who fatally shot Capitol rioter Ashli Babbitt.
During the Wednesday night edition of Tucker Carlson Tonight, Carlson questioned why the name of the Capitol Police officer who shot and killed Babbitt remained unreleased while the name of the former Brooklyn Center, Minnesota officer who fatally shot Daunte Wright on Sunday was quickly released. The U.S. Capitol Police is a federal law enforcement agency, while the local Brooklyn Center Police Department handles its affairs independently.
"We have a right to know who shot Ashli Babbitt and why," Carlson said. "No one will tell us. The Biden administration says the man who killed Babbitt is a Capitol Hill police officer and he did the right thing... If you shoot people without warning because they're in the wrong place, that's not allowed. But apparently now it is allowed."
Babbitt, 35, was shot and killed while attempting to climb through the broken window of a door inside the Capitol building on January 6. An unnamed officer shot Babbitt after "clearly identifying himself and ordering the mob not to come through the barricade," his attorney Mark Schamel said on Wednesday, according to The Associated Press. On the same day, the Department of Justice announced that months of investigation had "determined that there is insufficient evidence to support a criminal prosecution" of the officer.
Carlson admonished The Washington Post for not demanding that the name of the Capitol Police officer who shot Babbitt be publicly released while reporting that no charges would be filed, claiming that when the paper "doesn't like the candidate that you vote for, they suppress the details of the case." Carlson described the Capitol rioters as people who were simply "voting for Donald Trump, or walking on the U.S. Capitol building with a camera."
The Fox News host said it was "amazing" that the media was not pushing for the name of the Capitol officer to be released since the name of former Brooklyn Center Police Officer Kimberly Potter was printed "immediately" by "every news organization in the country."
Potter was charged with manslaughter on Wednesday for killing Wright, a 20-year-old unarmed Black man, during a traffic stop three days earlier. Before killing Wright with a single shot at close range, she claims to have mistakenly withdrawn her firearm while intending to reach for her Taser instead.
"[Potter] has now resigned, she's now facing charges," Carlson said. "Her mugshot is all over the internet. And that's why two nights ago a mob showed up at her house and forced she and her husband to flee."
Carlson added that the name of Kenosha, Wisconsin police officer Rusten Sheskey was also reported by the media after he shot Jacob Blake last August, sparking extended protests. Sheskey was cleared of any wrongdoing and returned to active duty on Tuesday. Carlson claimed that the names of both Sheskey and Potter were released due to the "political views" of Blake and Wright, although he did not specify what views he meant.
"That's the standard except in this case, where they are still hiding the identity of the officer who shot Ashli Babbitt," said Carlson. "Are you sensing a theme here? The standards that big news organizations use to cover shootings depend entirely on the political views of the people who get shot."
Fox News declined Newsweek's request for comment.
