Cop who fought Jan. 6 rioters: 'We are one election away from the extinction of democracy'

On the eve of the third anniversary of the deadly January 6 insurrection, one of the former US Capitol Police Department officers who faced off with rioters is announcing his campaign for a Maryland congressional seat.

Harry Dunn, who has been outspoken about the events of January 6, 2021, recently told NBC News that he was throwing his hat in the ring for an open US House of Representatives seat in Maryland's 3rd Congressional District, which became vacant with the retirement of Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Maryland). In a Friday morning interview on MSNBC, Dunn told host Mika Brzezinksi that he felt called to run as a means of protecting democracy.

"I don't think it's an exaggeration to say — it may sound scary, but we are one election away from the extinction of democracy as we know it," Dunn said. "Donald Trump said it himself that he is ready to be a dictator. And a lot of his supporters will sit there and say, you know, 'he's just joking,' but how many times has he said the things that we thought were jokes that he actually did and took him seriously?"

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In an apparent shot across the bow at the House Republican majority, Dunn added that he wanted to "fight back and be able to push back against the people in Congress right now" who are threatening democracy, which Dunn said he "spent the last 15 years of [his] life protecting."

Dunn has become a fixture in various court proceedings involving January 6 defendants, frequently testifying on the witness stand about being physically attacked by supporters of former President Donald Trump. During one case involving a member of the far-right militia Oath Keepers, Dunn was heard saying during the attack that "we have dozens of officers down. They’re taking them out on stretchers. Y’all are f---ing us up."

After announcing his candidacy, Dunn will join a very crowded Democratic primary for Maryland's 3rd district, which, according to Ballotpedia, already has seven candidates vying for the party's nomination. While there are also two Republicans running for the seat, the district is not rated as competitive by Cook Political Report. An analysis by liberal website Daily Kos found that MD-3 went for Biden over Trump by a 25-point margin.

Watch Dunn's interview below or by clicking this link.

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