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A new resolution from a group of Republican senators calls for the U.S. Capitol Building and Senate office buildings to once again be open to public visitors after nearly two years of restrictions that were put in place during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., led 26 of his colleagues who believe that, as many locations and businesses in the U.S. have reopened to the public, Congress should do the same by allowing constituents and tourists in.
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“Since March of 2020, the American people have learned how to safely gather and enter public places despite the existence of COVID-19 and, due to Operation Warp Speed, have had the opportunity to be vaccinated against COVID-19 for more than a year,” the resolution says, adding that Americans already gather in public settings for occasions, including sporting events, prayer services and entertainment, in addition to using “crowded public transportation vehicles” and going to “stores, restaurants and other public places.”
The resolution says it is “illogical and unacceptable” that the Capitol remains closed despite much of the country now being open, and that “it is time to once again welcome the public participation in the legislative process and the public visitation of our historic buildings that have always been hallmarks of American democracy[.]” It calls for a return to the same visitation policies and practices that the Capitol complex and Senate office buildings had before the pandemic.
“It is long past time for the Senate to reopen its doors to those who sent us here to represent them – the American people,” Hagerty said in a statement. “Thanks to Operation Warp Speed, vaccines have been available for over a year for those who want them, and Americans from coast to coast have learned to live their lives safely despite the pandemic. From stores to venues and most workplaces and schools, the rest of the United States has reopened, and it’s time for the Senate to do the same.”
The Capitol is seen at dawn in Washington, on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021.
(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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A number of Democrats in Congress have also supported reopening the Capitol.
“This place belongs to the people; they should be able to be here,” Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich., said in a statement to NBC News.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., also replied, “Pretty soon, I hope,” when asked when tours would resume.
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Fox News reached out to the Capitol Visitor Center as well as the House and Senate sergeants-at-arms, who made the decision to close to the public. None immediately responded to questions about the resolution and whether there are any plans to reopen.
In addition to Hagerty, the senators who are attached to the resolution are John Thune, R-S.D., Jerry Moran, R-Kan., Roger Marshall, R-Kan., Marco Rubio, R-Fla., Rick Scott, R-Fla., James Inhofe, R-Okla., James Lankford, R-Okla., Mike Braun, R-Ind., Thom Tillis, R-N.C., Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., John Hoeven, R-N.D., Roger Wicker, R-Miss., Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., John Cornyn, R-Texas, Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., Rand Paul, R-Ky., Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, John Kennedy, R-La., Josh Hawley, R-Mo., Ron Johnson, R-Wis., John Boozman, R-Ark., Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, Jim Risch, R-Idaho, and John Barrasso, R-Wyo, and Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo.
