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The House approved a bill to award Congressional Gold Medals to police officers that protected the Capitol during the riot on Jan. 6.
Medals will be given to the U.S. Capitol Police, the Metropolitan Police Department of the District Columbia, and one medal will be displayed at the Smithsonian, according to The Hill.
“January 6 was a day of horror and heartbreak, but because of these courageous men and women, it was also a moment of extraordinary heroism. That day the United States Capitol Police force put themselves between us and the violence, they risked their safety and their lives for others with the utmost selflessness, and they did so because they were patriots, the type of Americans who heard the call to serve and answered it, putting country above self,” Speaker Nancy Pelosi said.
Not all congress members were thrilled about the bill. 12 Republicans voted against the bill, including Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Matt Gaetz of Florida. They and other opposing members said they had problems with the text of the legislation.
“I was concerned about language preceding the honoring of the Capitol Police because some of it was neither true nor accurate, including saying we had an armed insurrection,” Rep. Louie Gohmert told The Hill. “Because we found out, no one that came in the Capitol was armed. So rather than having false information being voted for, I preferred to have a build [sic] that honored the Capitol Police without having false statements in it that’s why I took that out and honored the police.”
