Joe Biden, Kamala Harris pay respects to Capitol officer killed in riot

Image via AP.

Slain U.S. Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick lay in honor Wednesday in the building he died defending, as colleagues, members of Congress and the president and vice president paid their respects.

Sicknick died after defending the Capitol on Jan. 6 against the mob that stormed the building and interrupted the electoral count after then-President Donald Trump urged supporters on the National Mall to “fight like hell” to overturn his defeat. The U.S. Capitol Police said in a statement that Sicknick, who died the next day, was injured “while physically engaging with protesters,” though the cause of his death has not been determined.

President Joe Biden traveled to the Capitol to pay tribute to Sicknick shortly after the viewing began Tuesday night, briefly placing his hand on the urn in the center of the Capitol Rotunda, saying a prayer and sadly shaking his head as he observed a memorial wreath nearby. He was accompanied by First Lady Jill Biden. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and a handful of other congressional leaders also paid their respects.

Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband, Doug Emhoff, paid their respects Wednesday, placing their hands over their hearts and then touching the urn. A steady stream of lawmakers and police officers made its way through the Rotunda.

Dozens of Capitol Police stood at attention as Sicknick’s urn was carried up the Capitol steps Tuesday night. It was the first time an urn, rather than a casket, has been part of a memorial observance in the Capitol Rotunda.

There was a viewing period for his Capitol Police colleagues overnight, and lawmakers were to pay tribute at a ceremony Wednesday morning. A ceremonial departure for Arlington National Cemetery was planned later in the day.

Members of Congress remain shaken by the riots and are grappling with what it means not only for the future of the country but for their own security as elected representatives. While lawmakers were united in denouncing the riots, and Trump’s role in them, the parties are now largely split on how to move forward.