After members of his staff were detained in Washington, D.C., last week, Stephen Colbert took to his show to explain the circumstances of their arrest.
Members of his staff and crew, including popular puppet Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, were arrested while making a segment on the January 6 Hearings on Capitol Hill.
He defended the actions of his staff and crew, saying “They went through security clearance, shot all day Wednesday, all day Thursday, invited into the offices of the congress people they were interviewing.”
Colbert said his team and Triumph were arrested after conducting interviews while standing around in a hallway of the Capitol Building.
However, he was quick to defend the actions of Capitol Police, understanding their concerns and applauding their diligence.
“The Capitol police are much more cautious than they were, say, 18 months ago, and for a very good reason,” he went on to say, in reference to the insurrection his staff was reporting on.
Although his team was detained and processed, Colbert said the entire interaction between Capitol Police and his staff was calm and professional.
He defended his staff against members of the media, most notably Fox News host Tucker Carlson, who claimed they had committed an “insurrection.”
“I’m shocked I have to explain the difference, but an insurrection involves disrupting the lawful actions of Congress and howling for the blood of elected leaders, all to prevent the peaceful transfer of power,” Colbert said.
Colbert made sure to get a jab in at former President Donald Trump before finishing his monologue, saying, “As the hearings prove more clearly every day, the blame for that actual insurrection all lies with Putin’s puppet.”
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