The Senate approved the $1.5 trillion funding bill late Thursday.
This legislation provides billions of dollars in aid to Ukraine, as well as critical funding for the U.S. army, veterans hospitals, homeland defense, federal courts, FBI, and almost all other functions of the federal government. One page of the 2,741 pages was reserved by legislators for the purpose of requiring a plaque to honor the heroes of the U.S. Capitol Riot police.
The law demands that the plaque be made within one year. Congress has ordered the “listing of the names of all the officers of the United States Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia and other Federal, State and local law enforcement agencies or protective entities who responded in kind to the violence at the United States Capitol on the 6th of January 2021.”
During the riot, at least 114 US Capitol Police officers sustained injuries while trying to stop the mob. D.C. officers also sustained injuries. Multiple officer suicides occurred in the aftermath of the attack. After sustaining injuries on January 6, Brian Sicknick, a U.S. Capitol Police officer, succumbed to natural causes.
Sandra Garza, Sicknick’s girlfriend, said to CBS News that she was grateful for the gesture of Congress. Garza stated that she is happy Congress ordered that the plaque be engraved with the names of each officer. She stated, “Honoring individuals is really important. It validates their experience. It validates their experience.
Garza stated, “For Brian and the officers who sadly lost their lives, it is important (Congress does this).”
The new law mandates that the plaque be placed at the west end of the U.S. Capitol complex. This was the Capitol’s side that suffered the most severe, violent, and largest rioters attacks, including brutal hand-to-hand combat within a tunnel. One officer was assaulted and pinned in a doorway at the Capitol’s west side.
Don Beyer, Democrat from Virginia, praised first responders’ bravery in protecting the Capitol. He said that their actions “ensured that peaceful transfer of power – a core principle our system of governance – could continue.” He said, “It’s right that Congress ensures that these heroic actions are remembered for future generations. This plaque will help accomplish that.”
