[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 3 (Tuesday, January 6, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S52-S53]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        ANNIVERSARY OF JANUARY 6

  Mr. GALLEGO. Mr. President, today marks 5 years since January 6, the 
day a violent mob attacked the U.S. Capitol in an effort to overturn a 
free and fair election and disrupt the peaceful transfer of power. It 
was not a protest. It was not a misunderstanding. It was an assault on 
our democracy.
  I was there that day, as many of my colleagues were. I remember the 
pounding on the door of the House Chamber. I remember seeing staff 
stacking chairs against these doors to stop the mob from entering. I 
remember helping evacuate the floor as a mob was taking over the 
Capitol, and I remember looking around thinking about my family and 
whether we would make it out safely. That day left scars on this 
institution, on our democracy, and on the men and women who put 
themselves in harm's way to defend it.
  I served in the U.S. Marine Corps. I swore an oath to support and 
defend the Constitution of the United States, and I know what it means 
to take that oath seriously, not just in uniform but in life, which is 
why I will be offering an amendment to the Defense appropriations bill 
to ensure that military funeral honors remain reserved for those who 
have defended the Constitution, not for those who have sought to 
overthrow it.
  Last year, the administration offered military honors for Ashli 
Babbitt. Ashli Babbitt was not a hero; she was part of the violent mob 
that tried to overturn our democracy. She ignored repeated lawful 
orders from Capitol Police. She pushed to the front of the crowd. She 
helped to smash a window into the Speaker's Lobby and attempted to 
force her way through a barricaded door while she was armed

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with a weapon. She did not die defending her country; she died trying 
to tear it down.
  Military funerals are sacred. They are reserved for those who upheld 
their oaths, who defended the Constitution and the rule of law. To 
grant those honors to someone who participated in an attack on this 
Capitol would dishonor every servicemember who actually served to 
uphold that oath.
  I have seen real sacrifice. I have buried marines who gave their 
lives in protecting others. That is honor. Those who serve are expected 
to uphold military standards even after they leave service. When you 
violate the law and betray your oath, you forfeit the privilege of 
having military honors.
  If we equate the January 6 insurrection with genuine sacrifice, we 
cheapen everything our servicemembers have done in the defense of this 
country. We erode trust in our military, and we feed the dangerous lie 
that January 6 was anything other than a betrayal of our democracy.
  Taxpayer money should not be used to provide a military funeral to 
someone who took part in an attack on this Capitol. This is about 
accountability. It is about honoring those who have truly served with 
integrity, and it is about making clear, 5 years later, that we will 
not rewrite the history of January 6.
  I urge my colleagues to support this amendment and to remember the 
men and women who have defended this country honorably--those who 
upheld their oaths, who protected our democracy--and those who continue 
to serve with courage and sacrifice.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Delaware.

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