Former Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund gave his account of what happened during the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, in an interview with Daily Caller co-founder Tucker Carlson.
Sund, who was present at the Capitol riot, alleged that federal agencies withheld information and warning signs of potential dangers in the days leading up to the riot. His previous interview with Carlson on his former Fox show never aired.
Ep. 15 Former Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund reveals what really happened on January 6th. Our Fox News interview with him never aired, so we invited him back. pic.twitter.com/opDlu4QGlp
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) August 10, 2023
Sund said the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) privately expressed concern of possible violence breaking out during the “Stop the Steal” rally, but did not include this information in their intelligence assessments nor inform Sund of their concerns in order to prevent the violence.
“Think about it. I am the chief of police at the United States Capitol, probably one of the most prominent and should be the most secure building in the United States and the world. You know, you’d like to think of that,” Sund told Carlson. “But when you look at it, and don’t take my word for it, look at, there’s now at least four congressional reports talking about the intelligence failure, IG reports, GAO reports talking about various intelligence failures. But coming into it, you know, think about it. FBI, the Washington Field Office didn’t put out a single document, a single official document specific to January 6.”
“DHS didn’t put out a single official document specific to January 6,” Sund continued. “That’s very unusual. I’ve been through many other events in Washington, D.C. — FBI would host a joint conference call at the least and maybe an executive JTTF, Joint Terrorism Task Force briefing or, and for all these big events, DHS and FBI would get together and put out something that was called JIB — Joint Intelligence Bulletin. Zero for January 6.”
He told Carlson the day before the riot, he had a phone meeting with law enforcement officials who allegedly did not mention any of the warnings they received bout the potential violence. He added they “know for a fact” the FBI received several emails in the days leading up to Jan. 6 about the possibility of violence breaking out, despite being on a video call with the former FBI director.
Sund further alleged that former Secretary of Defense Christopher C. Miller and General Mark Milley discussed locking down Washington, D.C., to protect against any threats of violence at the Capitol and to revoke permits at the Capitol. Sund said he would have been in charge of revoking permits, but had not been informed of any dangers.
Despite their concerns of the riot, Sund said Miller sent out a January 4, 2021, memo to prohibit specific weapons from being carried on the property of the Capitol. (RELATED: Tucker Sits Down With Hunter Biden’s Business Associate Devon Archer)
He said there had even been talk about a possibility of storming the Capitol, killing Capitol police officers and burning down the Supreme Court, which had not been included in any of the federal agencies’ intelligence assessments.
He alleged then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi did not authorize Sund to bring in the National Guard to arrive at the Capitol despite his pleas.
“It doesn’t seem like people really want to get to the bottom of it,” Sund said. “It really doesn’t. And it just gets worse. It gets worse from there.”
Sund got approval to bring in the National Guard at 2:10 p.m. Before his approval, he alleged that he begged several generals, including General Michael Flynn, to bring the National Guard. The officials apparently told Sund they did “not like the optics of the National Guard” as he allegedly begged for their assistance to intervene.
“This sounds like a set up to me,” Carlson told Sund. “I’m sorry, it does.”
“It gets better. So I beg and beg and he goes, ‘well, I’m gonna walk down the hall and we’ll talk to the Secretary of Defense or whoever he’s gonna talk to.’ Right then I get a notification, oh, I’m still on the call, we have the shooting of Ashli Babbitt. And I said we have shots firing, I still remember yelling over the phone. We have shots firing on the U.S. Capitol, is that urgent enough for you now?”
Sund said the National Guard did not arrive on scene until 6 p.m., hours after the fatal shooting of Babbitt. He also alleged that the Pentagon sent resources to the generals’ homes to protect them rather than the Capitol.
In May, Sund questioned whether it was a coincidence that Fox News did not release his original interview with Carlson by firing him on the day parts of the interview were set to be aired.
“On the day he was fired, @TuckerCarlson was planning to air parts of our 1-hour interview and showcase my book,” Sund wrote in a May 5 tweet. “It was an interview he was excited about and said it ‘made the hair on my arm stand up.’ But Fox canned both Tucker and the interview. Coincidence?”
On the day he was fired, @TuckerCarlson was planning to air parts of our 1-hour interview and showcase my book. It was an interview he was excited about and said it “made the hair on my arm stand up.” But Fox canned both Tucker and the interview. Coincidence? pic.twitter.com/QA9jdfFjsb
— Chief Steven Sund (@ChiefSund) May 5, 2023
Carlson redid the interview with Sund nearly four months after departing from Fox News. The network never aired the episode of Sund and Carlson.