Washington– The Senate agreed to display a plaque honoring the police who defended the Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack, rebuffing House Speaker Mike Johnson, who said the memorial did not comply with the law.
The action happened quickly, with little debate, at Thursday’s session. Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina announced during the fifth anniversary of the Capitol siege this week that he would seek to ensure the plaque was installed, in partnership with Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon, who was also working on the situation, and Democratic Senator Alex Padilla of California. None of the senators objected.
“A lot of people said it was a dark day for democracy,” Tillis said on Jan. 6, 2021, describing his memories of hearing thousands of people — “thugs” — laying siege to the Capitol while Congress was tallying the results of the 2020 election.
He said that thanks to the work of law enforcement officers, this has become a great day for democracy. “We have returned and completed our constitutional duty to certify the elections,” he said. “We owe them eternal gratitude and this nation is stronger because of them.”
This week, senators stepped up after learning that the plaque, approved by Congress more than three years ago, had not been found in the Capitol. Instead, several House lawmakers hung replicas outside their office doors.
The Senate also appears to be motivated by the changing narrative from President Donald Trump’s White House about what happened on January 6, 2021, when his supporters stormed the building after he urged them to go to Capitol Hill to confront Congress over Democrat Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory.
Trump himself laid blame for the attack during a speech this week in which he said he had only intended for his supporters to peacefully march to the Capitol. Moreover, the White House released a glowing new report that also places blame for the deadly riots on Democrats, on Biden’s victory over Trump, and on the police for their response to the mob.
“It is very important that we be honest with the American people about what happened,” Merkley said, calling for the resolution to be passed.
“It is extremely important that we recognize those who defended our democratic republic that day,” he said, and that “people know that we, as members of the Senate and the House of Representatives, returned and finished our work that day, for the peaceful transition of power.”
Padilla said part of the context is the new location of the White House, which he said is “an attempt to rewrite history.” He said it “insults” the officers.
“The Senate’s bipartisan commitment to real history is strong,” he said.
The plaque was supposed, by law, to be placed on the West Front of the Capitol where some of the fiercest fighting took place. It was scheduled to be installed in 2023, a year after the legislation was passed.
The new resolution directs the Architect of the Capitol to “prominently display” the plaque in a location “accessible to the public” in the Senate Wing of the Capitol until it can be placed in its permanent location.
Displaying the plaque in its intended location requires agreement with the House of Representatives.
The office of Johnson, a Republican who before becoming House speaker led efforts to object to the 2020 election results, said this week that the billboard, as constructed, did not comply with the law.
The police filed a lawsuit to display the painting as required, but the Trump Justice Department is trying to dismiss the lawsuit.
Part of the “technical enforcement issue” was a concern, Tillis said, that the law specified that the plaque would honor all officers involved, but the plaque only lists the various law enforcement agencies that responded to assist the Capitol Police that day.
He said there will be a digital component, presumably a website, that will list all the names. The number of officers reaches thousands.
“You’ll see how many people come here,” he said.
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