Pelosi admits she should have done more to protect the Capitol on January 6: videos

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi repeatedly admitted she should have done more to protect the U.S. Capitol from the Jan. 6 rioters that former President Donald Trump unleashed to overthrow the election, newly released footage shows.

Pelosi also criticized the idea that anyone expected MAGA fans to “act in a civil manner,” according to video taken as she was led away from the Capitol as the angry mob began infiltrating the congressional building.

“We have completely failed. We have to take some responsibility for not holding security accountable for what could have happened,” the California Democrat fumed at one point.

“My God, I can’t believe the stupidity of this. I take full responsibility.”

The videos, filmed by her filmmaker daughter Alexandra Pelosi amid the chaos, were made public by the Republican-led House Administration Committee on Wednesday after being released by HBO this week.

The footage expands on an earlier batch of HBO documentary archives about Pelosi’s daughter released in June that showed her fuming over a lack of “accountability” and accepting “responsibility” for poor security.

“How many times have members asked, ‘Are we prepared? Are we prepared?’” Pelosi said in a video as she was escorted out of the Capitol. “We are not prepared for the worst. We are calling in the National Guard. Now? They should have been here to begin with.”

Pelosi later rebuked her chief of staff, Terri McCullough, as they drove away from the Capitol in a pickup truck.

“We have responsibility, Terri,” Pelosi fumed. “We had no responsibility for what was happening there, and we should have. This is ridiculous.”

“I’m going to be asked in the middle of it all, when they’ve already violated inauguration protocol, ‘Should we call the Capitol Police?’ I mean the National Guard. Why wasn’t the National Guard there to begin with?” Pelosi continued.

When McCullough explained that the National Guard believed it had “adequate resources,” the then-House speaker retorted: “It’s not a question of how they had them — they don’t know! They clearly didn’t know, and I take responsibility for not having prepared them for more.”

“It’s stupid. They thought they had what? They thought these people would act in a civilized manner? They thought these people cared at all? What is missing here in terms of forethought?” Pelosi added.

In the hours after the attack, Pelosi directed her anger at Trump.

“I feel bad about what he did to the Capitol and to the country today,” Pelosi said in the early hours of January 7, according to the videos. “He needs to pay a price for that.”

In another clip that showed her staff helping her draft a statement on the insurrection, Pelosi rejected a suggestion from her communications director, Henry Connelly, that she call for the resignation of Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund.

“I think our focus should be on the president. Let’s not get sidetracked,” Pelosi responded.

Elsewhere, Pelosi signaled her intention to describe Trump as “an internal enemy in the White House.”

“Let’s not beat around the bush,” she was filmed as saying, though those comments never made it into her final speech.

The release of the images comes as House Republicans, led by Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.), continue to examine the findings of the now-disbanded Jan. 6 select committee.

“This batch of unaired HBO footage is nothing new,” Loudermilk said in a statement Wednesday after posting the clips.

“For more than three years, Nancy Pelosi has refused to take responsibility for her failure to secure the Capitol grounds on January 6, 2021. Instead, she has put the focus of the failure on President Trump. As Speaker of the House, she controlled operations and security on the House side of the Capitol, something she acknowledges in this HBO video.”