Four months after the insurrection attempt that rocked the Capitol, some Republicans are still trying to rewrite the narrative of what actually went down that day—but an officer who was there isn’t having it.
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On the same day as Georgia Republican Andrew S. Clyde shockingly claimed that the Capitol riot was so tame that the video footage would look like a “normal tourist visit” for anyone who didn’t know better, footage from Officer Michael Fanone’s bodycam was released to the public.
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The video shows an entire mob of pro-Trump rioters, convinced the election had been stolen and it was up to them to storm the Capitol and overthrow the government, assaulting Fanone and even celebrating as he pleaded with them: “I have kids.”
Before one person in the crowd helped him get free and back to his fellow officers, Fanone was tased and beaten by the mob, who had one point allegedly hit him with a flagpole. The video ends with Fanone on the ground inside as other officers frantically call for medics.
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Fanone was one of an estimated 140 officers injured in the riots, which left five people dead. According to a thorough report from The New York Times, officers were knocked unconscious, stabbed, and sustained serious injuries that will cause lasting damage. One had a heart attack that was allegedly triggered by being repeatedly tased.
All of this to say, painting the insurrection as anything other than a brutal riot by a mob willing to enact harm on anyone who stood in the way of their goals is disingenuous at best and an egregious lie in service of a political agenda if we’re being realistic.
And Fanone wants people to understand that what really happened at the Capitol on January 6 lines up with the accounts that have been circulating since that day. The harrowing videos and photos and eyewitness accounts show a violent insurrection, not a “normal tourist visit,” no matter what Republicans are trying to claim after the fact.
“I’m not interested in getting into political squabbles,” he told Don Lemon on CNN. “I’m not a politician. I’m not an elected official. I don’t expect anybody to give two shits about my opinions. But I will say this: Those are lies. And peddling that bulls—t is an assault on every officer that fought to defend the Capitol. It’s disgraceful.”
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*First Published: May 14, 2021, 6:35 am
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