The United States House of Representatives has passed a bill that would award Congressional Gold Medals to those who helped restore order to The U.S. Capitol on January 6. Four medals will likely be awarded to members of the Capitol Police force, Washington, D.C Metropolitan Police Department, Smithsonian Institution and the architect of the Capitol.
"The desecration of the U.S. Capitol, which is the temple of our American Democracy, and the violence targeting Congress are horrors that will forever stain our Nation's history," the bill reads.
However, this bill did not pass in a unanimous fashion as many had hoped. In fact, 21 lawmakers voted against the bill and all of them were members of the Republican Party. Rep. Andrew Clyde attempted to downplay the chaos of the day by comparing it to "a normal tourist visit."
"There was an undisciplined mob. There were some rioters and some who committed acts of vandalism. But let me be clear: There was no insurrection, and to call it an insurrection, in my opinion, is a bald-faced lie. Watching the TV footage of those who entered the Capitol and walked through Statuary Hall showed people in an orderly fashion staying between the stanchions and ropes taking videos and pictures," the Georgia representative said.
"You know, if you didn't know that TV footage was a video from January the 6th, you would actually think it was a normal tourist visit."
Other members of Congress like Marjorie Taylor Greene compared the events of January 6 to the events of 1776 that led to America's independence from Great Britain. Paul Gosar argued that responders shouldn't receive these honorary medals because one officer shot violent rioter Ashli Babbitt during the chaotic day. Gosar even compared the shooting to an execution.
Despite pushback from the GOP, the bill will move to the United States Senate where it will likely pass.
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