Jan. 5 (UPI) — Former U.S. Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn announced Friday he will run for the open House seat in Maryland, replacing retiring Rep. John Sarbanes.
Dunn made his announcement the day before the third anniversary of his and fellow officers defending the U.S. Capitol against violent rioters supporting then-President Donald Trump. He retired from his position in December.
“On Jan. 6th, I defended our democracy from insurrectionists as a Capitol Police Officer,” Dunn said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “Today, I’m running for Congress to stop Trump’s MAGAextremists and ensure it never happens again.”
Dunn said as a Capitol police officer, he put country over politics to facing down a mob that broke into the building and tried to disrupt the Electoral College from certifying the presidential vote.
“I took an oath to protect our Constitution, to protect our democracy,” Dunn said in a video that accompanied his announcement. “That’s what allowed me to protect some members of Congress, who I knew were bigots, who helped fan the flames that started all of this. I put country above self.
“The problem is [that] a lot of them didn’t. Some of the same people who stood behind us when we protected them, went back on the floor of Congress and stood behind Trump. They voted to acquit him. And worst of all, they denied the violence and trauma that led to the death of some of my fellow officers. I couldn’t stand by and watch.”
Dunn, a 15-year veteran of the U.S. Capitol Police, said in an interview with NBC News that he believes the United States is one election away of losing its democracy.
“Because of Jan. 6 and everything that happened afterward, it’s clear how much of a threat the extinction of our democracy is,” Dunn told NBC News. “It’s very present right now.”
Dunn told ABC News in a Feb. 22, 2021 interview that he suffered from PTSD from the incident and was haunted by the disrespect shown them.
“I got called a [N-word] a couple dozen times today protecting this building,” Dunn said in remembering what he told one of his fellow officers on Jan. 6, 2021.”Is this America? They beat police officers with Blue Lives Matter flags. They fought us, they had Confederate flags in the U.S. Capitol.”
