Now Reading
Republican Congressman insults injured Jan 6 police hero to his face

Republican Congressman insults injured Jan 6 police hero to his face

/Every new week seems to bring a new low from House Republicans, but the efforts of House Democrats to honor the Capitol Police who risked life and limb to keep our democracy safe has elicited astonishing cruelty and condescension from the extremist Trumper faction.

Their guilty consciences on full display, 21 House Republicans voted against awarding the Gold Medal to the law enforcement officers who responded to the mob riot that Trump and his allies in Congress incited with their lies about the 2020 election.

The hostility and derision was obvious from the get-go; Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) infamously dismissed the vote to commemorate the 140 Capitol Police injured in the attack that he helped provoke as “all politics, all garbage.”

Add your name to demand Congress raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour!

But it was Georgia Rep. Andrew Clyde who really took it to the next level, allegedly disrespecting one of the Capitol Hill defenders to his face in a jaw-dropping show of Republican callousness.

Officer Michael Fanone was brutally beaten and knocked unconscious by the rabid Trump rioters on January 6th, suffering a heart attack and a concussion from his injuries. He is now suffering from a traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder from his treatment at the hands of the Trumpers celebrated as “peaceful patriots” and “normal tourists” by insurrectionist Paul Gosar (R-AZ).

When Officer Fanone ran into Rep. Clyde in the Capitol building, Clyde refused to even shake his hand.

The hallmark of Trumpism as a political philosophy is the immediate abandonment of any principle, allegiance, or friendship the minute it is no longer politically convenient. That appears to have been adopted by his disciples, for the formerly ferocious defenders of police officers are now publicly insulting them after the police are forced to turn their batons on Trump’s supporters themselves.

Just as offensive to the Trumper mindset is any acknowledgment whatsoever of the appallingly violent consequences of their misbehavior; that is why they are crying crocodile tears about how honoring the Capitol Police has been “politicized” by Democrats and any discussion of the violence on January 6th at all is absolutely verboten among the increasingly fascistic members of the Trump wing.

We are locked in a full-throated battle to preserve the truth of what happened on January 6th — and if this is how Republicans are going to behave behind the scenes, it’s clear we aren’t fighting hard enough.

Colin Taylor
Opinion columnist and former editor-in-chief of Occupy Democrats. He graduated from Bennington College with a Bachelor's degree in history and political science. He now focuses on advancing the cause of social justice and equality in America.

© 2022 Occupy Democrats. All Rights Reserved.

Scroll To Top