CRBC News
Politics
Conflict
Security
Economy
Science
Technology
Environment
Health
Culture
Society
Lifestyle
Politics

Evan Perez Praises Sean Hannity for Pressing Dan Bongino Over Jan. 5 Pipe-Bomb Claims

01:58 AM, 12/06/2025

Evan Perez praised Sean Hannity for pressing Dan Bongino about previous claims that pipe bombs found on Jan. 5, 2021, were an "inside job." Perez discussed the arrest of 30-year-old Brian Cole, who is accused of placing the devices outside the RNC and DNC and reportedly told FBI agents he believes the 2020 election was stolen. Cole is due to be arraigned Friday and has not entered a plea. Perez said Hannity asked the question he had wanted to raise at a press conference about whether Bongino still holds that theory.

CNN's Evan Perez Commends Hannity for Holding Bongino Accountable

CNN senior justice correspondent Evan Perez on Friday applauded Fox News host Sean Hannity for pressing conservative commentator Dan Bongino about earlier claims that the pipe bombs discovered outside Republican and Democratic National Committee offices on Jan. 5, 2021, were an "inside job." Perez discussed the exchange while appearing on The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer and Pamela Brown.

The discussion came as authorities announced the arrest of 30-year-old Brian Cole, whom the FBI and Justice Department have accused of placing pipe bombs outside the RNC and DNC on the night before the Capitol riot. CNN reported, citing sources briefed on the investigation, that Cole told FBI agents he believes the 2020 presidential election was stolen — a detail Perez said could be an important clue to motive. Cole is scheduled to be arraigned Friday afternoon and has not yet entered a plea.

Perez highlighted Hannity's on-air exchange with Bongino after the pundit had previously floated the inside-job theory on a podcast and posted on X that there had been a "massive cover up." In the clip Perez played, Bongino acknowledged that he had previously expressed opinionated views and suggested he now would emphasize facts over speculation. Perez called Hannity's line of questioning an example of accountability between commentators.

"Hannity asked the question that I wanted to ask," Perez said, noting he had repeatedly raised his hand at a Thursday press conference but was not called on. "Essentially, do you still believe that this was an inside job?"

The exchange underscores how high-profile media figures and investigators are confronting lingering theories about the Jan. 5 pipe-bomb incidents as the accused suspect moves through the justice system.

Reporting shown on CNN; the item was initially published on Mediaite.

Similar Articles

Trending