Far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones used his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination dozens of time on Monday during his testimony before the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
On his radio show Tuesday, Jones told listeners that he pleaded the Fifth "almost 100 times." He wanted to answer the questions, Jones continued, but "at the same time, it's a good thing I didn't, because I'm the type that tries to answer things correctly, even if I don't know all the answers, and they can then kind of claim that's perjury."
Just because someone pleads the Fifth, it does not mean "you're guilty" or "going to incriminate yourself, but it's also just because it can be used to try to incriminate you and twist something against you," Jones declared. He spoke to investigators remotely, and called the experience "extremely interesting, to say the least." The committee's lawyers were "polite" yet "dogged," he said, and their questions were "overall pretty reasonable."
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The committee's chair, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), sent Jones a letter last month that stated the panel had evidence Jones helped plan and fund the "Stop the Steal" rally that was held immediately before the Capitol attack. Jones spoke at a rally the day before the attack, and in the wake of the riot, he said the White House had asked him to "lead the march" to the Capitol.
On Tuesday, Jones said the request came from Caroline Wren, a Republican operative who organized the Stop the Steal rally, not someone actually at the White House. On Jan. 6, "we learned that there were a bunch of people inside the Capitol, and that was so stupid and so dumb, and we do not support that," he added. "I didn't support it that day. I don't support it now."
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