'Democracy was on the line, and it still is on the line': January 6 officers campaign against Trump in Wisconsin

 

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Two of the officers who defended the U.S. Capitol during the January 6 insurrection stopped in Wisconsin this week as part of a tour through several battleground states on behalf of President Joe Biden's re-election campaign.

D.C. Metropolitan Police Officer Daniel Hodges and former U.S. Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn held events over the past two days in Milwaukee, Madison and Eau Claire.

The visit to Wisconsin comes one month before Republicans will officially gather in Milwaukee to nominate former President Donald Trump as their 2024 presidential candidate.

The Biden campaign hopes replaying images of the January 6, 2021 riots, when Trump supporters breached the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to stop the certification of President Biden's 2020 victory, will resonate with moderate voters and re-energize liberals.

Penzeys Spices, a Wauwatosa company known for its liberal politics, recently unveiled a billboard outside Mitchell International Airport that reads, "Remember, remember January 6th in November."

One of the most often-played videos from the Capitol attack showed Hodges screaming out in pain as he was crushed in a doorway while officers tried to block Trump supporters from getting inside.

Following an event Thursday at Milwaukee City Hall, both Dunn and Hodges sat down for interviews with CBS 58.

"I mean, there were many times on January 6th where I thought I was gonna be killed or maimed," Hodges said. "There's...it's not an overstatement to say that democracy was on the line, and it still is on the line."

Hodges, who's still an active officer with the D.C. Metro Police, said he was campaigning for Biden despite not being "a big fan of Democrats in terms of public safety."

"Donald Trump is not a man of law and order," he said during the Milwaukee event.

Dunn's connection to politics is rather clear. He ran as a Democrat for a House seat in Maryland but lost the primary contest last month. During his campaign and during the Wisconsin visit, Dunn said he was driven by a desire to keep Mr. Trump from returning to the White House.

"It's no question that Donald Trump is the biggest threat to our democracy," Dunn said. "We've already seen what his presidency would look like, and he's telling us what his next one would look like."

Karoline Leavitt, national press secretary for the Trump campaign, countered President Biden presented a larger threat to the country's future. She cited inflation, border security and foreign affairs as her reasoning.

The May Federal Reserve report showed inflation has cooled, although many voters remain frustrated by the higher prices that linger for a number of goods following the 2022 inflation spike.

Regarding the January 6th attacks, Leavitt said Democratic leadership was responsible for the insurrection becoming so violent.

"Voters should blame Nancy Pelosi because she, herself, in a video that was released this week claimed responsibility for not securing the United States Capitol," she said.

Leavitt cited a video released this week by the House Subcommittee on Oversight, which showed former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi leaving the U.S. Capitol.

"Why wasn't national guard there to begin with?" Pelosi said on the recording. "They clearly didn't know, and I take responsibility for not having them just prepare for more."

Hodges and Dunn said Republicans were deflecting as they continued to place loyalty to Mr. Trump above anything else. 

When asked about Wisconsin Republicans who raised doubts about President Biden's 2020 win, despite numerous court cases and studies not finding evidence of widespread fraud, Dunn singled out Sen. Ron Johnson.

Johnson, who text records show was aware of an effort to deliver a fake slate of GOP electors to the Capitol on January 6, later met with Dunn, Officer Michael Fanone and Officer Brian Sicknick's mother in May 2021.

Dunn said he still begrudges Johnson for voting against the creation of an independent commission to investigate the Capitol riot, even after that meeting.

"He was convinced that it was Antifa or Black Lives Matter that was inciting the crowd and not Trump supporters," Dunn said. "You know, he's one of the individuals who is saying that it wasn't a big deal, wasn't a bad event that happened on January 6th."

Hodges said he believed it was necessary those who involved in the insurrection and lawmakers who downplayed the seriousness of it needed to pay in the courtroom and at the ballot box.

"Because the only other thing to prevent them from doing that is shame," he said. "And they've clearly demonstrated they don't have any of that."

Dunn and Hodges previously held events with the Biden campaign in Arizona, Nevada and Pennsylvania. They're going to Michigan next.

Former President Trump is scheduled to hold a rally Tuesday afternoon in Racine.