Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy was lambasted and accused of using law enforcement as political pawns after he posted several pictures and a video of him bike riding with U.S. Capitol police.
His posts were accompanied by the hashtag #BackTheBlue.
His appreciation for cops came as a surprise after he refused to meet with injured DC Metropolitan Police Officer Michael Fanone.
Officer Fanone was injured during the Capitol riot that was incited by members of McCarthy's party who are now trying to downplay the insurrection.
CNN exclusively obtained Officer Fanone's bodycam footage from the day of the insurrection which showed him being savagely beaten by the MAGA mob and dragged down the steps of the Capitol's Lower West Terrace as he pleaded for mercy.
One rioter was heard in the video saying, "I got one!"
At one point, Fanone pleaded with his attackers to stop and yelled, "I have kids!" referring to his four daughters back at home.
He was eventually brought back into the Capitol and continued struggling for air after being repeatedly shocked by a stun gun.
He said he suffered a mild heart attack that day.
When Fanone later tried contacting McCarthy's office to talk about the attack, McCarthy's staff allegedly hung up on him.
In a May 13 tweet, McCarthy shared several pictures of him cycling with cops and captioned it with:
"Great bike ride with US Capitol Police this morning! To all law enforcement officials out there—Republicans have got your back."
However, his statement about Republicans supporting the police was debatable.
McCarthy's posts came after several Republican members of Congress downplayed the riot or dismissed it completely.
During a House Oversight Committee hearing about the Capitol siege, Representative Andrew Clyde of Georgia said the Trump supporters who stormed the Capitol behaved "in an orderly fashion" and that anyone watching footage from January 6 would "actually think it was a normal tourist visit."
Clyde was also present at the police biking event.
Texas Representative Pat Fallon called the rioters just a "mob of misfits," and Arizona Representative Paul Gosar minimized the behavior of rioters, saying "many…peacefully protested," adding that law enforcement officials were "harassing peaceful patriots."
Georgia Representative Jody Hice said:
"It was Trump supporters who lost their lives that day, not Trump supporters who were taking the lives of others."
McCarthy also posted a video on Monday in which he expressed his solidarity with America's police.
"RT to agree —> America's police deserve our respect and appreciation. I loved every second of our #BackTheBlue Bike Tour."
Social media users were quick to question McCarthy's loyalty to the police after he ignored calls from Fanone.
The House Minority Leader's office denied the report of hanging up on the officer and called Officer Fanone a liar.
Fanone has been an outspoken critic of politicians downplaying the events of January 6 in which five people died—including Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick.
The pro-Donald Trump rioters included QAnon conspiracy theorists and members of White supremacy groups like the Proud Boys who were told by Trump during a rally to march on the Capitol to disrupt the certification of President Joe Biden's electoral college win.
@cubswwww reply to @cspan/X
@DCBlindOwl reply to @cspan/X
@JulianaStratton/X
@HagemanforWY/X
