President Biden and congressional leaders visited the Capitol Rotunda on Tuesday night to honor Capitol Policeman Brian Sicknick, who died of injuries sustained during the January 6 riot in the building he helped defend.
Biden entered the Rotunda with First Lady Jill Biden shortly after the ceremony began, where he was captured briefly by placing his hand on the table that displayed Sicknick’s remains before they both laid their hands on their hearts.
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden pay their respects to the late United States Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, while an urn with his cremated remains is in honor of a table with black curtains in the center of the Rotunda Capitol, Tuesday, February 2, 2021, in Washington. (Erin Schaff / The New York Times via AP, Pool)
He then said a prayer and shook his head sadly as he watched a nearby wreath. The apparition lasted a few minutes.
FALLEN CAPITOL OFFICIAL POLICE BRIAN SICKNICK TO LIE IN HONOR IN CAPITOL ROTUNDA
The grim arrival ceremony began at 9:30 pm ET on Tuesday and saw dozens of Capitol police officers standing at attention as their urn was carried up the Capitol steps – almost a month after a crowd of former President Donald Trump supporters invaded the building.
An honor guard places an urn with the cremated remains of US Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick and a folded flag on a table with black curtains in the center of the Capitol Rotunda on Tuesday, February 2, 2021, in Washington. (Leah Millis / Pool via AP)
Also paying tribute were House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.
US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat on the left, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, pay tribute to the remains of US Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick, at the US Capitol roundabout in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, February 2, 2021. Photographer: Erin Schaff / The New York Times / Bloomberg via Getty Images
“Congress is united in mourning and gratitude for the sacrifice of Capitol police officer, Brian Sicknick. His heroism helped to save lives and protect our democracy, ”Pelosi tweeted on Tuesday night. “Now, he is in honor at the United States Capitol while we pay tribute to his patriotic service.”
Sicknick, 42, was hit in the head by a fire extinguisher while “physically engaging” with demonstrators on the Capitol on January 6, officials said. He passed out when he returned to his division and died in the hospital due to his injuries the next day. Sicknick was one of five people who died as a result of the disturbances.
Pelosi and Schumer said last week that their heroism “helped save lives, defend the temple of our democracy and ensure that Congress was not diverted from our duty to the constitution”.
His sacrifice, they said, “reminds us every day of our obligation to our country and to the people we serve.”
A fellow police officer is thrilled to pay his respects to the late US Capitol Police officer, Brian Sicknick, as he lay in his honor at the US Capitol Roundabout in Washington, DC, on February 2, 2021. (Photo by SALWAN GEORGES / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)
Sicknick, 42, of South River, NJ, enlisted in the National Guard six months after graduating from high school in 1997, before being sent to Saudi Arabia and later to Kyrgyzstan. He joined the Capitol Police in 2008 and was known to lawmakers, officials and others who passed the building’s doors every morning.
He is the fifth person to be honored at the Capitol Rotunda, a designation for those who are not elected, judges or military leaders.
CAPITOL POLICE BRIAN SICKNICK WILL LIE IN HONOR IN ROTUNDA: PELOSI, SCHUMER
His family issued a statement through the United States Capitol Police on Saturday, thanking Congress.
“The family of the United States Capitol Police Officer, Brian D. Sicknick, thanks the Congressional leadership for bestowing this historic honor on our dead American hero,” the statement said. “We also want to express our gratitude to the millions of people who offered their support and solidarity during this difficult time. Knowing that our tragedy and personal loss is shared by our nation brings hope for a cure.”
Members of Congress continue to be shaken by the unrest and are struggling to find out what that means not only for the country’s future, but also for their own security as elected representatives. While lawmakers were united in denouncing the disturbances and Trump’s role in them, the parties are now widely divided on how to move forward.
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The attack generated uncertainty, fear and political turmoil in Congress when Biden started his presidency. Democrats in the impeachment Chamber of former President Trump a week after the attack, sending a “incitement to insurrection” charge to the Senate, where Republicans are unlikely to provide the votes needed to condemn him.
The building was isolated from the public, surrounded by large metal fences and defended by the National Guard.
Dom Calicchio, Danielle Wallace and The Associated Press of Fox News contributed to this report