[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 138 (Tuesday, August 3, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5685-S5687]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 AWARDING FOUR CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDALS TO THE UNITED STATES CAPITOL 
   POLICE AND THOSE WHO PROTECTED THE U.S. CAPITOL ON JANUARY 6, 2021

  Mr. SCHUMER. Well, Mr. President, as you know, as we all know, 
January 6 unleashed many horrors, but it also revealed many heroes. A 
day that many of us remember for its violence, anger, and destruction 
was not without its share of bravery, sacrifice, and selflessness.
  I am, of course, talking about the Capitol Police and the 
Metropolitan Police. In a few moments, my colleagues Senators Klobuchar 
and Blunt will ask the Senate to award them the Congressional Gold 
Medal. It is the highest expression of gratitude that Congress can 
bestow. I cannot imagine more worthy recipients than the men and women 
who put their lives on the line to defend this temple of democracy.
  I want to thank Senator Klobuchar, the chair of the Rules Committee, 
and

[[Page S5686]]

Senator Blunt, the ranking member of the Rules Committee, for working 
so hard on this. And I want to commend the House and Speaker Pelosi and 
the House Members who voted for it as well.
  Now I must mention that I am still stunned by what happened in the 
House, where 21 Members of the House Republican caucus voted against 
this legislation. The Senate is different. I expect this to pass 
unanimously. That is why we are here doing it today. But those folks in 
the House were some of the same folks who likened the January 6 attack 
to ``a normal tourist visit,'' who deny the events that day were an 
insurrection. The same folks who screamed the loudest about the dangers 
of defunding the police refused to defend the police--the very police 
that shielded them--from the vicious mob on January 6.
  For the life of me, I don't know how they sleep at night.
  That is one of the many reasons this gold medal is so important. The 
gold medal is about setting the record straight and recognizing the 
true heroism on display that fateful day.
  My colleagues, we have a moral obligation to never forget what our 
first responders faced down. A mob of White supremacists and domestic 
terrorists stormed the barriers with vicious force, using flag poles as 
spears and fences as battering rams. Capitol Police officers were 
swarmed, beaten, crushed between the doorways, and tasered repeatedly. 
One hundred forty officers were assaulted that day. Fifteen required 
hospitalization. Seven people have lost their lives in connection with 
this attack.
  Just this week, sadly--I read this story and I ached--two more police 
officers took their own lives, heaping tragedy upon tragedy. These past 
6 months have been the hardest in the history of the Capitol Police 
Force. And yet they still keep watch. They still stand guard. They do 
their jobs every single day with professionalism, excellence, and 
grace.
  Awarding the Congressional Gold Medal is a way to commemorate their 
sacrifice and make sure that the truth of January 6 is recognized and 
remembered forever.
  To our Capitol and Metropolitan Police, thank you, thank you, thank 
you for all that you do. This recognition is the very least you 
deserve.
  Once again, I want to give real praise to my colleague from Minnesota 
as I yield to her. She has done an amazing job as head of the Rules 
Committee in many different ways and this is one of many. And I want to 
thank Senator Blunt who always works in a spirit of bipartisanship. We 
are in quite a bipartisan week here, and that is a good thing.
  Senator Klobuchar.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Minnesota.
  Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I thank Senator Schumer for his 
leadership.
  With that said, we in the Senate were able to come unanimously behind 
this important, important resolution, which I will describe in a 
minute.
  I also thank Senator McConnell, and I certainly thank my friend 
Senator Blunt for his leadership.
  We must pass this legislation honoring the Capitol Police and other 
heroes who protected the Capitol on January 6 by awarding them this 
Congressional Gold Medal.
  Senator Blunt joined me from the beginning in sponsoring the Senate 
version of this legislation and worked with me on the Rules Committee. 
And I thank the Presiding Officer, Senator Padilla, for his great 
service on that committee to continue the work of getting to the bottom 
of the security, planning, and response failures that we saw on January 
6.
  While that work goes on, it is important that we recognize the 
bravery and patriotism of those who defended our democracy and our 
lives with Congress's highest honor.
  The insurrection at the Capitol was more than an assault on 
democracy. Oh, it was that in a big, big way, but it was also an actual 
life-or-death situation for the many brave law enforcement officers who 
show up here to do their work every day.
  We will never forget the haunting shrieks of the police officer 
pinned in between the doors at the hands of rioters, pleading for help. 
We will never forget Officer Harry Dunn, who told his story again last 
week at the House select committee, recounting how he fought against 
the violent mob for hours and after it was all over, broke down in 
tears, telling fellow officers in the Rotunda that he had been called 
the N-word multiple times that day. And he looked at his friend, his 
fellow officer, and said: ``Is this America?''
  These medals today, these Congressional Gold Medals that will be 
displayed for millions to see--one at the Smithsonian, one in this 
Capitol, one at the Metropolitan Police, and one with the Capitol 
Police--they answer that question.
  No, Officer Dunn, that was not America, but these medals that 
recognize your bravery, this is America.
  Then our own Officer Eugene Goodman, who after saving Senator Romney 
from walking directly into the mob of insurrectionists, ran by himself 
to take on a group of rioters and then diverted that mob away. We have 
all seen it on the video. We know what he was doing: allowing the rest 
of us to safely depart.
  Tragically, the attack on the Capitol also cost the lives of four 
brave officers, including Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who 
died the day following the attack. And I had the honor to meet his 
family.
  Four other officers died following the events of January 6: DC 
Metropolitan Police Officer Jeffrey Smith, his colleagues Gunther 
Hashida and Kyle DeFreytag, whos passings were reported just yesterday, 
and, of course, Capitol Police Officer Howard Liebengood.

  We are also so inspired by the work of their loved ones who have come 
to Capitol Hill to fight for a 9/11-style Commission to look at the 
insurrection and why it happened, to get to the bottom of it and to 
advocate for the Capitol Police to support their officers.
  It has been reported that at least 140 more officers sustained 
injuries from defending the Capitol. The courage of these officers will 
be remembered forever.
  We responded. Senator Blunt and I joined with Senator Portman and 
Peters on the Homeland Security Committee to interview officials from 
multiple agencies and review thousands of documents. We convened major 
public hearings and then interviewed many, many other witnesses.
  Our resulting bipartisan joint report focused on the security, 
planning, and response failures related to the violent and 
unprecedented insurrection at the Capitol, and it includes key findings 
and recommendations that must be put in place without delay. I am 
pleased that we have introduced our bipartisan bill, which will make 
sure that the new Police Chief will be able to call in help from the 
National Guard without calling a bunch of other people in the middle of 
a crisis.
  We have just passed, on a bipartisan basis, thanks to Senators Leahy 
and Shelby, major security funding that will help to give the police 
the resources they need and fund the improvements needed to this 
Capitol.
  We also have put in place two new Sergeants at Arms, one in the 
Senate and one in the House, as well as a new Police Chief, Chief 
Manger, whom I just met with for a lengthy period of time yesterday to 
go over all of our recommendations. By the end of the year, I will 
appear in this Chamber with a checklist to make sure that they are 
either done being implemented or in the process of being implemented to 
be done soon.
  Another key priority that we called for in our report was advanced 
last week when the President signed into law, as I said, all of the 
funding that we need. And what that includes that I didn't mention, 
$4.4 million for mental health support for Capitol Police officers and 
the many officers who are still dealing, as we can see, with trauma to 
this day.
  Passing this bill, which, of course, already passed the House--and, 
yes, I agree with Senator Schumer about how it is impossible to 
understand why some people voted against it, but it still passed with 
bipartisan support--is another step forward to honor the heroism and 
sacrifice of our law enforcement.
  Those medals, when little kids walk by and see them at the 
Smithsonian, their parents are going to be able to tell them this 
happened. This attack happened, and there were brave police officers 
and staff and others in this

[[Page S5687]]

building that stood up that day and protected our democracy, and we 
will be forever thankful to them.
  We are hearing a lot about gold medals, and some of them by our own 
USA team that we are so proud of the last week at the Olympics.
  This is our Olympics. This is our gold medal. And it goes to them, to 
the Capitol Police officers and the Metropolitan Police officers and 
others that protected us that day.
  Thanks, Senator Blunt, who is here with us as well.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Missouri.
  Mr. BLUNT. Mr. President, I am proud to join my friend and my 
colleague Senator Klobuchar as we introduce and support this amendment.
  You know, every day when I come to work at the Capitol, the first 
person I see is almost always a U.S. Capitol Police officer, and no 
matter how late I leave at night, the last person I see is almost 
always a U.S. Capitol Police officer.
  I was working in this building on 9/11, and one of the last people to 
leave that morning as the Capitol Police encouraging us to get out of 
the building, but the last person I saw as I left the building who was 
still in the building was a Capitol Police officer.
  The Capitol Police have a hard job to do. They not only defend us, 
but they defend democracy in a way that other police officers are not 
asked to do, and they always do it at the highest level of 
professionalism and dedication. That was never more evident than it was 
on January 6. It was a difficult and sad day for Americans but 
especially for law enforcement officers who serve and protect the 
Capitol and for their families.
  I have often said that, very possibly, the hardest job to do in 
America today is to be the family member of someone who works in law 
enforcement. Maybe the second hardest job is to be the person working 
in law enforcement. But those families on that day were watching 
television, listening to the news, seeing their very worst fears play 
out for all the world to see on a day that was horrific for them, 
horrific for the person they love, and horrific for those who love this 
building and what it stands for.
  I am incredibly grateful for the heroic actions we saw that day from 
the Capitol Police, from the Metropolitan Police, who, along with Chief 
Conte, who was the Acting Chief at the time, were here within 10 or 12 
minutes of being called and here in force in that period of time.
  Others came from around the region, and all those law enforcement 
people who were here to help that day, we are deeply appreciative of.
  The legislation we have here really calls on us to recognize the 
selflessness, the dedication, the willingness to stand in the way of 
danger as others are able to try to get away from danger. It honors the 
sacrifices they make and their families make every day.
  I hope, by passing this Congressional Gold Medal bill by unanimous 
consent, we send a clear message to law enforcement officers that we 
are united in our appreciation of all they do to keep us safe.
  I urge my colleagues to join not only in supporting the unanimous 
passage of this bill but also to be quick in talking about our deep 
appreciation for those who serve in such a special way as we try to do 
our work here every day.
  I yield back.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Minnesota.
  Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be discharged from 
further consideration and the Senate proceed to the immediate 
consideration of H.R. 3325.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (H.R. 3325) to award four congressional gold medals 
     to the United States Capitol Police and those who protected 
     the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.

  There being no objection, the committee was discharged, and the 
Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Ms. KLOBUCHAR. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered 
read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be 
considered made and laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (H.R. 3325) was ordered to a third reading, was read the 
third time, and passed.
  Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I want to thank my colleagues, every 
single one of them, including Senator Blunt and Senator Collins, who is 
here with us today, for supporting this legislation and honoring the 
heroism and patriotism of the courageous law enforcement officers who 
risk and in some cases sacrifice their lives to defend our democracy. I 
also want to thank Senator Blunt for his work on the Senate version of 
this legislation, as well as Senator Schumer and Senator McConnell, and 
I thank Senator Blunt for joining me today.
  Now it is headed to the President's desk. No more motions, and this 
is done. I look forward to seeing this bill signed into law.
  I yield the floor.

                          ____________________