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'Went to hell and back': US officers slam Trump allies for downplaying Jan 6 riots
During an emotional testimony in front of a House select committee, DC Metropolitan police officer Michael Fanone said that those denying the events of January 6 “betray their oath of office.”
A member of the Washington DC police force blasted US lawmakers who continue to downplay the January 6 riots in Capitol Hill, saying the indifference shown to his colleagues is “disgraceful.” During an emotional testimony in front of the House select committee investigating the Capitol attack, DC Metropolitan police officer Michael Fanone said that those denying the events of January 6 “betray their oath of office.”
"I feel like I went to hell and back to protect them and the people in this room, but too many are now telling me that hell doesn't exist, or that hell actually wasn't that bad. The indifference shown to my colleagues is disgraceful," Fanone fumed, slamming his fist on the table.
The attack on the US Capitol followed a speech by Donald Trump as Capitol police scrambled to protect lawmakers busy counting electoral college votes to certify Joe Biden as the winner of 2020 presidential elections. The US House of Representatives, where Democrats had the majority, impeached Trump on the charge of inciting violence in the Capitol but the Republican leader was acquitted in an evenly-split Senate for the second time since conviction required a two-thirds vote.
The House panel investigating the attack comprises seven Democrats and two Republicans who had voted for Trump’s second impeachment. GOP leader Kevin McCarthy refused to seat Republican members on the committee after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi vetoed his two choices citing “integrity” of the probe.
On Tuesday, GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger, a Trump critic, asked four officers appearing for the hearing whether the Capitol attack felt like “old history” to them. "Sometimes I get, you know, we hear out there it's time to move on, right? It's been six whole months, time to move on. Does this feel like old history and time to move on, and just say yes or no," the Illinois Republican asked.
“No,” responded all four officers.
"There can be no moving on without accountability. There can be no healing until we make sure this can't happen again," DC police officer Daniel Hodges said.
Capitol Police Sgt. Aquilino Gonell told the House panel that Trump’s remarks about the “loving” crowd outside US Capitol are “insulting”, adding that Trump himself “helped to create this monstrosity.” "To me, it is insulting, it is demoralizing because everything that we did was to prevent everyone in the capitol from getting hurt," the officer said, responding to a question from Wyoming Republican Representative Liz Cheney.
