01.22.21

McConnell Thanks National Guard for Protecting the Capitol Complex

‘I want to again thank all the National Guard, including more than 300 Kentucky Guardsmen, and local and federal law enforcement who have helped supplement our very own Capitol Police in the wake of January the 6th. Your Congress and your country appreciate all you’ve done to secure the Capitol and the inauguration.’

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding the National Guard:

“Yesterday evening, we learned that some of the National Guard forces who have been helping protect the Capitol complex were being made to rest in parking garages between their shifts.

“I don’t think a single Senator feels that was acceptable. I am glad the situation was resolved and I hope we learn exactly what happened.

“I want to again thank all the National Guard, including more than 300 Kentucky Guardsmen, and local and federal law enforcement who have helped supplement our very own Capitol Police in the wake of January the 6th. Your Congress and your country appreciate all you’ve done to secure the Capitol and the inauguration.

“Later today, I’ll have the honor of meeting a number of my fellow Kentuckians who have been helping out here at the Capitol. It’s going to be the highlight of my day.

“In the near future, Congress needs to smartly transition toward a more sustainable security presence. Keeping the Capitol safe cannot and will not require huge numbers of uniformed troops and vast systems of emergency fencing to remain in place forever.

“With the inauguration behind us, we should find the right middle ground between the unacceptable lapses three weeks ago and the extraordinary short-term measures that have been in place since.

“And in the meantime, we need to make darn sure that we look after the men and women who look after us.”

Related Issues: Law Enforcement, America's Military