The military funeral for Ashli Babbitt can move ahead as planned after U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) blocked a measure that would have denied her the honor.
Babbitt, an Air Force veteran, was shot and killed on Jan. 6, 2021, as she and other citizens concerned about the outcome of the presidential election pushed through the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C.
President Donald Trump recently announced Babbitt would be receiving the military funeral honors after she was denied them under the Biden administration.
U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) tried to pass a resolution last Wednesday to reverse Trump's decision but was blocked by Tuberville, according to The Hill.
"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 from the Senate floor. "Ashli Babbitt earned these funeral honors through her service to this nation."
He said Babbitt should receive military funeral honors since she was not convicted of a crime, and it would now only serve "to punish" her family, who still mourn their loss.
"It's disgraceful, and it's un-American. In case my colleague is unaware of this, the Constitution still applies even to those you disagree with politically," Tuberville said.
Gallego said Babbitt was a "traitor" who was killed "trying to tear" down the country.
"She didn't die protecting our country. She died trying to tear it down," he said, The Hill reported. "Military honors are sacred. They are reserved for the men and women who swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution and the rule of law and actually live up to it. To give them to Babbitt would be a spit in the face to all of them, to every veteran who died defending this country."
He continued, "Those who served are expected to uphold our oath and military standards even after we are done with our service. If you violate the law and betray the oath, you forfeit honors. Ashli Babbitt knew what she was doing when she stormed the Capitol, and she knew it was illegal. She wasn't a martyr. She was and is a traitor."
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