Biden campaign taps Jan. 6 officers to campaign in battleground states ahead of presidential debate

Three police officers who defended the Capitol during the deadly Jan. 6 riot will help President Joe Biden's campaign in battleground states ahead of next month’s debate between Biden and former President Donald Trump, the campaign announced Tuesday.

Former Sergeant Aquilino Gonell, former Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn and Metropolitan Police officer Daniel “Danny” Hodges will campaign in Nevada, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan and New Hampshire, the campaign said in a news release.

The officers will meet with local elected officials, law enforcement organizations and community members to underscore what it described as the threat Trump poses to democracy and the “ongoing threat of political violence” if Trump is re-elected, the release said.

Dunn on Tuesday was joined by former D.C. Metropolitan Police officer Michael Fanone — who suffered a heart attack and traumatic brain injury after being violently assaulted during the Capitol attack — and actor Robert De Niro in a press conference held by the Biden campaign outside of the Manhattan courthouse where Trump’s hush money trial is taking place.

During the press conference, Dunn argued that Trump continues to pose "the greatest threat" to democracy as he seeks a second presidential term.

"The fight for a lot of us didn’t end on January 6, that evening when we went home. The fight still continues now," Dunn said. "What happened that day was an attempt to halt, to overthrow, an election. Donald Trump is the greatest threat to our democracy and the safety of communities across the country today, he has encouraged and continues to encourage political violence."

"Political violence is never acceptable. But you have a presidential candidate, you have a