A clip of former D.C. police officer Michael Fanone confronting a prominent Jan. 6 conspiracy figure during a House Judiciary Committee hearing caught fresh attention this week, and not just for the heated exchange.
Fanone was wearing a Dropkick Murphys t-shirt reading "FIGHTING NAZIS SINCE 1996," prompting the longtime punk band to publicly praise him and highlight his decades-long support.
Michael Fanone confronts Ivan Raiklin
During Thursday's House Judiciary Committee hearing on Jack Smith's investigation into President Donald Trump, cameras caught Fanone moving to confront Ivan Raiklin.
In December 2020, Raiklin tweeted the dubious legal theory known as the "Pence card" to Trump. This theory alleged that then-Vice President Mike Pence had the authority to reject the electoral college votes during the certification process on Jan. 6.
That idea spread, and many credit the widely debunked theory for fueling the 2021 riot that left Fanone with a traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder. Rioters beat the officer with metal poles and repeatedly tasered him, causing a heart attack and concussion.
Raiklin has continued to push claims of 2020 election fraud and openly support the rioters. On Thursday, Fanone further accused him of vile harassment. The video posted by the Dropkick Murphys shows him stepping to Raiklin, speaking at first in hushed tones as his associates try to hold him back.
Fanone called Raiklin a "traitor to this country," who then accused the former cop of being "spasmodic." As the committee chair attempted to regain order, Fanone began to shout.
“This guy’s threatened my family, threatened my children,” he said. “Threatened to rape my children, you sick b*stard! Rape my children!”
Enter the Dropkick Murphys
Fanone's t-shirt was plainly visible in the clip, attracting the attention of the band. They posted the video to their Instagram the following day.
"Much love to Michael Fanone for standing up for the people," the band wrote in the caption, adding that he's "been with us from the beginning. He was at our first DC show in ‘96."
The Dropkick Murphys have a long anti-fascist history, including their condemnations of Trump going back as far as 2017. Bassist Ken Casey once roughed up a concert-goer who rushed the stage and gave a Nazi salute.
The anti-Nazi t-shirt sported by Fanone is now sold out in both adult and youth sizes on their official website, available only for pre-order.
In the Instagram comments, Dropkick Murphys fans had their own praise for Fanone.
"I've never been more proud of another person who wasn't in my family," wrote @robsheol. "HE is a true goddamn patriot. I tip my cap to you, sir. America needs more people like you."
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