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The family of fallen Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick publicly snubbed Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy during the Congressional Gold Medal ceremony honoring the heroes of January 6th.
The Congressional Gold Medal is the highest award Congress can bestow for distinguished achievements and contributions by individuals or institutions.
This week's event honored the fallen police officers who protected the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021, the day a mob of former Republican President Donald Trump's supporters attacked the nation's seat of government on the false premise the 2020 general election had been stolen.
But Sicknick's family wanted nothing to do with the GOP leaders, refusing to shake hands with either of them. Video from the event shows McConnell offering his hand as they walked by, while McCarthy did not.
You can watch what happened in the video below.
\u201cDuring Congressional Gold Medal ceremony for Jan. 6 police, representatives of those receiving awards shake hands with Schumer then walk past McConnell and McCarthy.\u201d— Howard Mortman (@Howard Mortman) 1670344414
Brian Sicknick died of a stroke after he was assaulted while responding to the attack on the Capitol. His name has become synonymous with the many police officers who suffered horrific and unprecedented trauma as they attempted to restore order and protect the seat of the nation's government on January 6.
The attack left at least five people dead and resulted in over 100 injuries to law enforcement and millions of dollars in damages.
But Republicans have opposed attempts to investigate and hold responsible those who orchestrated and participated in the attack. Both McConnell and McCarthy voted against the creation of an independent commission to investigate it.
Additionally, both lawmakers have repeated former President Trump's lies that the 2020 election was stolen.
While McConnell has sought to distance himself from Trump somewhat—and has borne the brunt of many of Trump's criticisms—he initially refused to acknowledge Democrat Joe Biden as the winner of the presidential election and only changed course once it became clear that Trump's election denial had irrevocably fractured the Republican Party.
McCarthy himself was a very vocal election denier and spent weeks ahead of the attack undermining the electoral process, vowing not to certify Biden's election win. In fact, he still voted to overturn the presidential election results in the hours after the attack.
He also lied about calling for Trump to resign—even after an audio recording revealed he had done just that—and later famously reconciled with the former President at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate.
Many weren't surprised the Sicknicks snubbed Republican leadership—and even praised them for doing so.
\u201cThis is how traitors should be treated. They sit in Congress but don't represent their voters. They represent the folks who fill their pockets. They are members of the oldest profession in the world.\u201d— Piyush Mittal \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 (@Piyush Mittal \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6) 1670358800
\u201cBrutal and well-deserved.\u201d— Julia Ioffe (@Julia Ioffe) 1670354217
\u201cMcConnell standing there with his hand out expecting something but getting nothing is the first time Kentucky voters were able to relate to him since he was elected in 1984.\u201d— Covie (@Covie) 1670348580
\u201cThey know. They know who supported them and who gave cover to the attackers. This is really something to behold.\u201d— PoliticsGirl (@PoliticsGirl) 1670350831
\u201cHave never seen anything like this. Good on them for exercising a very effective protest.\u201d— Charles Adler (@Charles Adler) 1670351954
\u201cI can watch these family members refusing to shake hands with McConnell and McCarthy all day on a loop. This heartfelt act of disrespect must have been so embarrassing for those hypocritical GOP leaders.\u201d— Jon Cooper (@Jon Cooper) 1670353395
\u201cPublic humilation of this kind is the very LEAST that McConnell and McCarthy deserve.\u201d— CK (@CK) 1670347059
\u201cRemarkable. Their anger is valid, earned, and frankly less than the level of rage they should have for those complicit cowards.\u201d— Josh Gad (@Josh Gad) 1670347124
\u201cAs they should. No respect given? No respect shown.\u201d— yvette nicole brown (@yvette nicole brown) 1670363484
The Sicknicks later told reporters they had not planned to snub McConnell and McCarthy at the event and only realized there might be a face-to-face encounter when they sat across from them as the ceremony started.
Ken Sicknick, Brian Sicknick's brother, toldHuffPost that the family didn't think either lawmaker cared about honoring Sicknick or the other officers who were injured or later died as a result of the attack, saying they only gave speeches because "they were forced to" because "they were the leaders of their respective parties."
Sicknick's mother, Gladys Sicknick, has long excoriated Republicans for not backing the creation of an independent commission to investigate the January 6 insurrection. During this year's midterm elections, she appeared in an ad urging Arizona voters not to vote for GOP gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake, who has repeatedly endorsed Trump's lie that the 2020 election was stolen.