Mar 29, 2022 - Politics & Policy
Who has lain in state
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
The late Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) became the latest public figure to lie in state in the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, an honor accorded the longest-serving congressman from the current Congress after his death on March 18.
Why it matters: The frequency of public figures lying in state or honor in the Capitol has increased during the past two decades, according to data from the Architect of the Capitol.
Driving the news: President Biden paid tribute to Young, praying before his flag-draped casket as he lay in repose at the Capitol's Statuary Hall.
- The president's service in the Senate overlapped with Young's in the House. Senior aides Steve Ricchetti and Kurt Campbell joined him.
- Statuary Hall is the same setting where the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was honored.
By the numbers: Since 2000, the number of deceased Americans who have lain in the Capital is 13.
- During the previous two decades, it was four, including two Capitol police officers killed in the line of duty, Sen. Claude D. Pepper (D-Fla.) and an unknown soldier from the Vietnam War.
- In the 1960s and '70s, Congress honored eight Americans — including four presidents.
