Senate unanimously approves installing Jan. 6, 2021 plaque

The Senate unanimously approved a measure Thursday to display an existing plaque honoring the officers who protected the Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021 riot.

Congress passed a law in March 2022 mandating the plaque, but years later it has yet to be installed. Speaker Mike Johnson has argued the project is "not implementable," and the Justice Department has maintained in litigation that an existing plaque does not comply with the law because it lists the departments who responded, not the individual officers.

The measure on Thursday, led by Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), sought to address the long-running political squabble.

“On January 6, 2021, courageous law enforcement officers from the United States Capitol Police and other agencies risked their lives to defend the United States Capitol and protect Members of Congress and their staff,” Tillis said in a statement. “Prominently displaying this plaque in the United States Senate ensures their heroism and sacrifice are properly recognized.”

It’s not clear when the Senate will install the plaque, which will remain in the Senate until a permanent location is identified on the west front of the Capitol. The resolution does not need to be approved by the House.

The stark moment of bipartisanship came just after the 5-year anniversary of the Capitol attack was marred by political bickering. The White House published a website to rebut the narrative of the riot filled largely with false information, and Republicans continued to villainize the previous Democratic-led Jan. 6 committee that investigated the attack in its aftermath.

At the beginning of his second term, President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly downplayed and mischaracterized the attack, pardoned those who took part in the riot, including some convicted of violent offenses.