Final details are being worked out for Sen. Harry Reid to lie in state in the Capitol Rotunda during the week of January 10, a person familiar with the arrangements told Axios on Sunday.
The Nevada Democrat and former Senate majority leader died on December 28 at age 82.
In order for the honor to be accorded, both chambers of Congress must agree to a joint resolution.
It is given to Americans who have served their nation in an official capacity and provides a formal opportunity for Washington — including members of Congress and often times the sitting president — to pay their respects to the deceased.
The honor also gives a chance for public reflection on the deceased’s life and the policy changes that the individual helped usher into law.
Military officials are also involved in working out some of the logistics.
Congressional leaders and Reid’s family are both working on finalizing the details, according to the source, Axios reported.
Another Senate majority leader, Kansas Republican Bob Dole, had the honor bestowed on him just a few weeks ago following his death.
Former associate Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in 2020, laid in state in Statuary Hall, between the Rotunda and House floor.
The last president to lay in state in the Rotunda was Gerald R. Ford 15 years ago.
Reid passed away "following a courageous, four-year battle with pancreatic cancer," according to his wife, Landra Reid.
Former President Barack Obama credited the former Senate majority leader with encouraging him to run for the White House, as well as for being instrumental in passing his signature Affordable Care Act.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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