As a third-generation veteran, Norfolk State University graduate, and Courage for America Councilmember, I am concerned about the future of our veteran community here in Virginia. After transitioning from active duty in the United States Air Force in 1992, I moved to Virginia to attend Norfolk State University where I earned my Bachelor’s Degree in Advertising. Since then, I’ve become an active community member, advocating for better protections, legislation, and job opportunities for veterans in our area. 

Veterans and our leadership skills are integral to Virginia and this country. Yet, too many of our leaders tout their support for the troops and then are nowhere to be found when veterans need basic support. My own congresswoman, Jen Kiggans, is one of those MIA legislators. She routinely rejects policies and positions that would support veterans and prefers to side with the policies of Project 2025 – a dangerous, far-right agenda that would gut programs that benefit veterans, military families, and others. We are one of the most veteran-rich states in the country, and we deserve to have our representatives serve us, just like we served our country. 

Every Member of Congress, including Congresswoman Kiggins, needs to condemn Project 2025 and refuse to support its policy priorities, especially those that harm veterans and military families. 

I served in the U.S. Air Force because my grandfather was a WWII veteran. Following his example, I knew I wanted to serve my country. When I retired from the Air Force, I first came to Virginia to attend college, using the benefits afforded to me under the G.I. Bill. I’ve seen how supporting veterans has allowed my adopted home to thrive. Nearly 15% of the constituents of Virginia’s Second Congressional district are veterans. There are more than 83,000 veterans living here. In fact, Virginia, as a whole, has the third largest veteran population per capita. It’s disappointing that our own representative in Congress has supported legislation that would significantly harm this community. 

Earlier this year, Congresswoman Kiggans voted for a budget bill that would lead to “30 million fewer veteran outpatient visits, and 81,000 jobs lost across the Veterans Health Administration,” according to the Veterans Administration. She also refused to support reforms on predatory payday lenders that specifically target veterans with interest rates as high as 400%. Kiggans even voiced support for a 15-week abortion ban and told The New York Times that she didn’t support subsidies for service members to travel across state lines to access abortion care, calling abortion “elective surgery.” Based on Kiggans’ record, it is clear that she would be a rubber stamp for Project 2025 and a second Trump presidency. 

Project 2025 is an extreme right-wing blueprint for the next conservative presidency and it directly harms veterans. One of its main proposals is eliminating the Department of Education. This is personal to me because without the loans afforded to me through federal loan programs within that department, neither myself nor countless other veterans would have been able to afford higher education. Additionally, Project 2025 seeks to gut federal agencies and the federal workforce, which has a disproportionately high rate of veteran employment. Project 2025 would  cost the jobs of thousands of veterans. It would also seek to privatize much of the Department of Veterans Affairs, making it more difficult for veterans and their families to access necessary medical care. Congresswoman Kiggans’ ties to Project 2025 are more than hypothetical. New research released this week by House Accountability War Room shows how Kiggans has already supported policies included in Project 2025. 

Veterans are pillars of our communities and we need leaders who stand up for us and our neighbors, and allow us to thrive. Supporting Project 2025 policies, voting to cut veterans benefits, and threatening job opportunities for veterans is the wrong approach. Congresswoman Kiggans needs to end her duplicity and take a firm stand against Project 2025 and commit to supporting our veterans with meaningful legislation rather than partisan politics. Throughout our country’s history, veterans have always risen to the call of service. It’s what compelled me to enlist and it is what has propelled me to advocate for my fellow veterans in Virginia, and nationwide. Congresswoman Kiggans and all members of Congress should be guided by that same principle of service rather than the partisan policies of Project 2025 and wealthy donors. 

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“MAGA extremists have tried to rewrite the events of January 6th, 2021, but we must never forget the truth.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, former Metropolitan Police Department officer and Courage for America Councilmember, Michael Fanone, responded in an op-ed with Courier Newsroom to a recent Time Magazine interview with former President Donald Trump. Officer Fanone, who was severely injured while defending the Capitol against insurrectionists on January 6th, 2021, highlights the serious threat MAGA Extremism and Trump has on our democracy and calls out MAGA Republicans for continuing to perpetuate the Big Lie ahead of the November election.

“When violent insurrectionists stormed the Capitol on January 6th, all I could think about as I was defending it was how I wanted to make it out alive and be able to see my four daughters again. I thought that I had experienced the worst of Donald Trump and MAGA extremism that day, but after reading Trump’s comments in a recent interview with Time Magazine, and after extremists falsely called a SWAT team to my parents’ home just this week — I am even more outraged. Although everything that Trump said is exactly what I have come to expect from the former president, the fact that his extreme supporters are now targeting my family demonstrates how much of a threat they are to our democracy.”

“MAGA extremists have tried to rewrite the events of January 6th, but we must never forget the truth. That single day disrupted my entire life and, as this week’s events have  shown, it continues to. January 6th led to a colleague of mine dying and ended my twenty-year career in law enforcement. The mob of insurrectionists maced, tased, and beat me and my fellow officers over and over again. I was brutally choked and thrown into the crowd, hit repeatedly with fists and metal objects, and I even heard one voice yell, ‘Kill him with his own gun.’ It sent a visceral fear down my spine. After the attack on the Capitol, I thought hard about the state of our democracy and how we must be diligent in defending it. Following the events of this week, I am committed to ensuring that MAGA extremism is defeated for the well-being and security of this nation.”

“Trump’s vision for the future and his draconian agenda only further threaten American democracy as we know it. Trump boasts that he wants to be a ‘dictator,’ prosecute President Biden, and pardon the January 6th rioters, whom he calls ‘patriots.’ The only difference between now and three years ago is that Trump is saying the quiet part out loud. I’ve learned to believe everything that he says about his intentions, and I hope the American people pay attention to these dangerous threats.”

“Trump has been, and continues to be, a proud spokesperson for political violence in this country, and even though he is out of office, his MAGA lapdogs in Congress continue to follow Trump’s every word and push his anti-democratic agenda through Congress. 139 House Republicans went along with the Big Lie and voted to overturn the results of the 2020 election results. Many of them continue to spew these dangerous lies. In this Congress, extreme MAGA Republicans voted against an investigation into January 6th and awarding Congressional Gold Medals to the Capitol Police officers who defended them. This includes our current Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, who was one of the extreme MAGA Republicans who voted against certifying the 2020 election in 2021. Since becoming Speaker, instead of rising to the occasion as a leader and calling out Trump’s anti-democratic rhetoric, Johnson has been visiting Mar-a-Lago frequently and dining alongside Trump and his billionaire donors.”

“That level of support and complicity by members of Congress is what encouraged the insurrectionists to assault Congress – and the police officers who were just doing their jobs. It’s shameful. As we head into the 2024 election, we need lawmakers to respect the integrity of our free and fair elections, ensure the peaceful certification of the results, and work to prevent another January 6th from happening again.”

“Since they clearly need to be continuously reminded, Donald Trump and the members ofCongress who stand by him need to look back at the photos and videos of January 6th. No one who witnessed the events of that day should ever call it a ‘peaceful protest’ because it was the exact opposite. The rioters were a violent mob that attempted to disrupt our constitutional democratic process and overthrow the 2020 election after being lied to by Donald Trump and his cronies. However, instead of acknowledging that reality, many Republican leaders have called insurrectionists currently facing jail time “hostages.” This is a blatant lie to the American public.”

“Many other brave police officers and I risked our lives to defend members of Congress and our democracy. For MAGA Republicans in Congress to continue perpetuating the Big Lie is a slap in the face to everyone who defended them at the Capitol three years ago and to the American people as a whole. Around two in three Americans are worried about another violent insurrection following this year’s election, and Congress needs to step up to ensure our democracy is safe. Our elected officials need to have the courage to call out the Big Lie and commit to certifying the election results on January 6, 2025. Anything less is aiding MAGA extremism.”

“Democracy is a precious thing. It should never have become a political bargaining chip. Although political disagreement is natural in a democracy, it should never result in violence against one another, the targeting of our loved ones, or violate the Constitution. I am eager for the day when Trump and MAGA extremists are a thing of the past and no longer have the chokehold on our democracy that they do today. Until then, we must remain vigilant and call on our elected officials to certify this year’s election results and defend our democracy from another insurrection.”

Read the op-ed HERE.

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I voted for Donald Trump in 2016. I used to be an avid consumer of right-wing media. But for me and millions of Americans, including those of us who spent our careers in law enforcement, Jan. 6, 2021, changed everything. It was a day that shook our core values and left so many wondering what America stands for. 

After two decades working for the U.S. Capitol Police and then Metropolitan Police Department, I experienced my fair share of violence, but nothing prepared me for my colleagues’ desperate calls for help that January. My partner Jimmy and I suited up, not because we were required to but because our fellow police officers were under attack. It had nothing to do with politics or political parties, which I never cared for, and had everything to do with duty — to the men and women who represent us, the dedicated public servants who help them and, yes, our democracy itself. 

When we got to the Capitol, the siege was intense beyond imagination. I saw one police commander, my friend and someone I had known for two decades, violently coughing and struggling to breathe after inhaling the toxic fumes of chemicals deployed by rioters. But he, like the dozens of officers I fought alongside of in one of the Capitol’s tunnels, stayed in the fight, determined to hold the line.  

I was shocked by the thousands of rioters determined to break into the Capitol in order to disrupt the democratic process. It was chaotic and incredibly violent. I saw knives, baseball bats, metal poles and even improvised explosives. At one point, I was grabbed by the neck and dragged into the mob. I was beaten with fists and metal objects. I was struck with a taser again and again and again. I was called a “traitor.” But what I will always remember is the moment I heard the mob chanting, “Kill him with his own gun.” That’s the moment I thought my four daughters could lose their dad. 

Now, three years later, I am more concerned than ever for the country I love so much. A year from today will be the first time Congress certifies a presidential election since the insurrection. Two in three Americans are worried history could repeat itself. They could be right. 

That’s why I believe peaceful certification must start with making sure every American knows what actually happened on January 6th. The indifference and lies I’ve witnessed since 2021 are a national disgrace. One congressman even called it a “normal tourist visit.” Let’s begin with making sure everyone has watched the videos of what happened and heard the stories of those of us who were there, so that they know the stakes of what’s to come. 

It will be members of Congress, some of whom voted against certifying the last election hours after the attack, who will be charged with certifying the 2024 results. In some scenarios, such as no candidate receiving the required 270 Electoral College votes, they may even choose our president. They have to know the millions of Americans they represent are watching their every move and listening to every word.  

We cannot wait until January 2025. Call your representatives. Keep sending letters. They have to know that, no matter the outcome of the election, their responsibility is not to political parties or donors but to those of us they represent. 

We have to also restore trust in our elections system. There is legislation right now that would defund election security grants and make it harder for millions of people to vote in 2024. These harmful bills cannot pass. I don’t care what your politics are, something we can all agree on is the sanctity and security of the vote. It’s our most important duty as citizens and the last hope for saving our democracy. 

We will always have our disagreements and differences. That’s democracy. It’s often messy. But we cannot allow it to also be violent. We shouldn’t have to have a conversation about whether another insurrection will happen, but that’s reality. The future of our country, the country we will leave for our children, depends on all Americans to come together now and over the next year to restore trust in our elections system and apply pressure on Congress to peacefully certify the election. We cannot wait. We cannot fail. 

Michael Fanone is a former U.S. Capitol Police officer and Metropolitan Police Department officer who was severely injured while defending the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. 

Read the op-ed here.