One of the more naked betrayals of the social contract between Americans and the Grand Old Party is their treatment of the law enforcement personnel who were tasked with defending the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021. In attempting to downplay the seriousness of that tragic day’s events, Republicans have very openly denied all evidence available to them, and blocked the lowest hanging bipartisan fruit available to them when they filibustered away a Jan. 6 commission to investigate the events of that day.

Of the many officers there that fateful day, who fought for not just our democracy but their own lives, is D.C. Metro Police Officer Michael Fanone. Fanone has been very active in pursuing elected officials for some kind of acknowledgement of what happened that day. Among other injuries, Officer Fanone suffered a mild heart attack after being dragged down the Capitol steps by the MAGA-inspired mob. He has campaigned for government officials to “fully recognize” the bravery that he and other members of Capitol law enforcement displayed that fateful day. He has also been outspoken in his distaste for the “disgraceful” collection of Republican officials who have openly downplayed the event. A few days ago, Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said he had reached out to Michael Fanone, a claim Fanone told reporters was ”bullshit.” Fanone’s account of how full of bullshit Kevin McCarthy is was attested to by McCarthy’s history in politics, as well as more granularly by Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, who speaks with Fanone every day.

On Friday, Officer Fanone met with McCarthy behind closed doors. Fanone’s first words to reporters after leaving McCarthy’s office were, “I need a drink.”

Fanone gave more specifics of his interaction with McCarthy, saying that he had “specific requests” of the House’s top Republican. “To denounce the 21 Republicans who voted against the Gold Medal bill, which would recognize my coworkers and colleagues that fought to secure the Capitol on Jan. 6. I also asked him to denounce Andrew Clyde’s statements regarding Jan. 6, specifically that it was something of a ‘normal tour day’ here at the Capitol. I found those remarks to be disgusting. I also asked him to publicly denounce the baseless theory that the FBI was behind the Jan. 6 insurrection. I had the privilege and honor this week of meeting with quite a few FBI agents, as well as other members of law enforcement, who’ve worked tirelessly in investigating both the assaults on me, and many of my coworkers.”

Officer Fanone, who was not obligated to be at the Capitol that day as he was off-duty, suited up to offer assistance to his fellow law enforcement colleagues and went down to help maintain some order. For his service, Fanone was pushed, grabbed, beaten, and tased repeatedly by the MAGA-inspired mob at the Capitol that day. He told reporters shortly after those events that upon feeling someone getting a hold of his firearm and hearing others in the crowd call for them to kill him with his own gun, “I just remember yelling out that I have kids, and it seemed to work. Some people in the crowd started to encircle me and try to offer me some level of protection.” 

Officer Fanone has made it his mission to get officials like McCarthy to have the basic decency to meet him face to face and explain their indefensible positions on the Jan. 6 coup d’etat attempt. When Republican Rep. Andrew Clyde described the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection as a “tourist visit,” Fanone approached him. “I extended my hand to shake his hand. He just stared at me. I asked if he was going to shake my hand, and he told me that he didn’t who know I was. So I introduced myself. I said that I was Officer Michael Fanone. That I was a D.C. Metropolitan Police officer who fought on Jan. 6 to defend the Capitol and, as a result, I suffered a traumatic brain injury as well as a heart attack after having been tased numerous times at the base of my skull, as well as being severely beaten. At that point, the congressman turned away from me.” According to Fanone, Clyde then looked at his phone and when an elevator door opened, he “ran as quickly as he could, like a coward.”

Pictures of Rep. Andrew Clyde looking like the kind of coward who lies about being afraid in order to line his pockets with blood money are readily available here.

Back in the halls with reporters, Fanone grew emotional as he explained that he didn’t “want to be up here on Capitol Hill,” because he’d rather be with his daughters, but he sees it as “an extension” of his Jan. 6 service, and that he wants to support his fellow officers who are still on the job.