Republican Rep. Barry Loudermilk claims the Capitol rioter he led on a tour was simply taking a photo of a 'golden eagle sconce' light fixture

After the January 6 committee released security camera footage of him giving an unofficial tour of House office buildings, Republican Rep. Barry Loudermilk of Georgia sought to explain himself to reporters.

The man who was on the tour was at the Capitol the next day and made threats against the Democrats.

The behavior of these individuals during the January 5, 2021. tour raises concerns about their activity and intent inside the Capitol complex.

According to the committee, the same man shown photographing a stairwell in the basement level of the Longworth House Office Building later posted a video of a man carrying a pole and declaring: "That's for somebody special, somebody special." There's no escape, Pelosi, Schumer, Nadler. We will come for you.

Loudermilk told reporters that the man was taking pictures of a light fixture on the wall.

There is a golden eagle on the wall in the stairwell. He was taking a picture of something.

The Architect of the Capitol's website has an image of a lamp similar to the one the man may have been trying to take.

Loudermilk said that tour attendees who took photographs at security checkpoint in the Rayburn and Cannon House Office Buildings were simply looking at trains that lawmakers take to votes. Members of the public were not allowed to enter the Capitol at that time.

These are people who have never been to Washington, DC They came to see their congressman. They were happy.

—CSPAN (@cspan) June 15, 2022

Loudermilk didn't recognize the man's voice when he was asked about the threats against Pelosi.

Loudermilk said that he did not support anything he said, but nobody in that group spoke that way.

The Georgia Republican claimed that the media had access to the letter before him and that the committee was trying to create a narrative so that the media would run with it.

"If someone wants to talk to me, I'll talk to them, but they don't want to hear from me," said Loudermilk. The Georgia Republican's request to speak to the committee was reiterated in a letter that was released with the footage.

The police force did not "consider any of the activities we observed as suspicious" according to a letter released by a Republican congressman.

He said that the Capitol Police looked at it and didn't find anything suspicious.

The footage from the security camera can be found below.