Senate Unanimously Votes To Award Congressional Gold Medal To Jan. 6 Officers

The Senate has approved legislation to bestow Congress' highest honor, the Congressional Gold Medal, on the law enforcement officers who responded to the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. The House passed the measure earlier this summer, and the bill now heads to President Biden's desk.

Majority Leader Chuck Schumer led the unanimous, bipartisan approval of the legislation on the Senate floor.

"I cannot imagine more worthy recipients than the men and women who put their lives on the line to defend this temple of democracy," said Schumer.

Rules Committee Chair Amy Klobuchar made a timely comparison to an honor reserved for the greatest and most dedicated athletes:

"Well, this is our Olympics, this is our gold medal," Klobuchar said, "and it goes today to the Capitol Police officers and the MP officers and others that protected us that day."

The committee's ranking Republican, Roy Blunt, said the medal honors the sacrifices police officers and their families make.

This story originally appeared on the Morning Edition live blog.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.