WASHINGTON – Sen. Ruben Gallego tried but failed Wednesday to block military funeral honors for Ashli Babbitt, the January 6 rioter killed by police keeping the mob out of the U.S. House.

“She didn’t die protecting our country, she died trying to tear it down,” the Arizona Democrat said during a floor speech, recalling the hours he and other lawmakers spent in hiding during the siege. “She wasn’t a martyr, she was and is a traitor.”

Gallego, a Marine veteran, said the Air Force veteran forfeited the privilege of military honors by storming the Capitol and joining the attempt to derail certification of the 2020 election.

Babbitt has become an icon for Trump supporters since the riot on January 6, 2021, and Republicans quashed Gallego’s effort without a roll call vote that he sought in hopes of forcing them to go on record about her legacy.

President Joe Biden’s administration rejected the Babbitt family’s request for a military funeral and fought a $30 million wrongful death lawsuit.

By contrast, President Donald Trump has depicted Babbitt as a “patriot,” denouncing her death as a murder and the officer who shot her as a “thug.” The Justice Department and the Capitol Police both cleared the officer of any wrongdoing.

Footage captured the confrontation between Babbitt and other rioters at the doors to the Speaker’s Lobby just off the House floor. An officer shot her as she tried to crawl through a smashed window. Steps away, House members were fleeing for safety.

In May, the Trump Justice Department agreed to a $5 million settlement with the family.

On his first day back in office in January, Trump pardoned or issued clemency to more than 1,500 people charged with or convicted of crimes related to the riot, including those who had brutally attacked police. The highest profile Arizonan pardoned was Jacob Chansley, the self-styled “QAnon Shaman.”

Democrats viewed the pardons as outrageous.

Gallego has fueled speculation that he’s eyeing a 2028 White House bid with recent visits to Iowa and New Hampshire. He used a debate over the Pentagon budget to put a spotlight on the Babbitt case.

“I remember hearing the pounding on the doors of the House chamber – seeing my colleagues barricading the doors with furniture to stop the insurrectionists from breaking in and disturbing and stopping democracy’s day,” he said.

Gallego spent five terms in the House before winning his Senate seat last November.

Both he and Babbitt served in Iraq.

Babbitt, from California, spent 14 years on active duty or in the Air National Guard and also deployed to Afghanistan and the United Arab Emirates.

“Military honors are sacred,” Gallego said. “To give them to Babbitt would be a spit in the face to … every veteran who died defending this country.”

Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., objected to Gallego’s resolution. That was enough to kill it, because Gallego had sought approval through a procedure that requires unanimous consent.

“This resolution is nothing more than a pathetic attempt to strip away the earned honors of a veteran who deployed seven times during her many years in the United States Air Force,” Tuberville said.

The Air Force announced August 28 that it had reversed the Biden-era refusal of military funeral honors.

In a letter to the Babbitt family, Undersecretary Matthew Lohmeier said the initial decision had been “incorrect.”

Tuberville cited the $5 million settlement and Babbitt’s lack of a criminal background as evidence she shouldn’t have been stripped of military funeral honors.

“In case my colleague is unaware of this, the Constitution still applies, even to those you disagree with politically,” he said.

Gallego recounted that Babbitt entered the Capitol carrying a folding knife, arguing that her actions that day were both illegal and a violation of her military oath to uphold the Constitution.

“If we equate the January 6 insurrection with genuine sacrifice, then we cheapen everything our servicemembers have fought and died for,” he said.

Four Arizona Republicans in the House voted against the certification of Biden’s victory. Three are still in office: Reps. Andy Biggs of Gilbert and Paul Gosar of Bullhead City voted to reject the results in both Arizona and Pennsylvania. Rep. David Schweikert of Fountain Hills voted to reject only Pennsylvania’s results. (Debbie Lesko of Peoria didn’t seek reelection last year.)

During the January 6 proceedings, Gosar announced a challenge to the Arizona slate on behalf of more than 50 House Republicans. Hours later — after the mob had swarmed the Capitol, forcing lawmakers to evacuate — the House voted 303-121 to accept the Arizona electors. The Senate vote was 93-6.

Records from the House January 6 investigation showed that Biggs and Gosar joined a December 21, 2020, White House strategy session to discuss ways for Vice President Mike Pence to block the certification of Biden’s win. Pence refused.

For more stories from Cronkite News, visit cronkitenews.azpbs.org.

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Note: This story originally appeared on Cronkite News. It is published via a Creative Commons license. Cronkite News is produced by the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.

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