President Joe Biden has marked the second anniversary of the January 6 insurrection by awarding the Presidential Citizens Medal to 14 individuals who defended the US Capitol, saying democracy 'cannot be taken for granted'. At a White House ceremony on Friday, Biden praised the honourees as 'a remarkable group of Americans who embodied the best before, during and after January 6, 2021'.
Among those recognised were Capitol Police officer Eugene Goodman, who diverted rioters from the Senate floor, and Ruby Freeman, a Georgia election worker falsely accused of fraud by former President Donald Trump. Also honoured were former Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers and Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, who resisted pressure to overturn the 2020 election results. Posthumous medals were awarded to Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, who died of natural causes after the attack, and officers Howard Liebengood and Jeffrey Smith, who took their own lives in the aftermath.
Biden noted that the attack was 'fueled by lies' about the 2020 election, but said 'our democracy held because we the people did not flinch'. He cautioned that 'there’s nothing guaranteed about our democracy' as the nation faces an 'inflection point'. The ceremony contrasted with ongoing chaos in the House of Representatives, where Republicans struggled for a fourth day to elect a speaker.
