Former Sen. Bob Dole lies in state at the Capitol as his colleagues pay tribute

By Brian Naylor,

Marco Storel

Published December 9, 2021 at 4:08 PM EST

Arrival of the casket of former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole to the U.S. Capitol. Dole will lie in state until Friday's departure to a funeral service at National Cathedral.

Former senator and congressman Bob Dole is lying in state in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, in the building where he served more than three decades as a lawmaker from Kansas.

At a ceremony Thursday morning, President Biden, who served with Dole for 25 years in the Senate, remembered his former colleague as a great friend, as "a giant of our history" and a hero of democracy.

Dole died Dec. 5 at the age of 98.

A joint services military honor guard carries the casket containing the remains of the late Sen. Bob Dole into the U.S. Capitol where he will lie in state on December 9, 2021 in Washington, D.C. Following the casket are Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley; Dole's wife, former Sen. Elizabeth Dole; and daughter, Robin.

With his widow, former Sen. Elizabeth Dole, and his daughter Robin looking on, Biden praised Dole for putting principle over party, saying the only way forward for democracy is through unity and consensus.

"May we follow his wisdom and his timeless truth," Biden said.

Congressional leaders also praised Dole. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell called him the last of the greatest generation to run for president — something he did, unsuccessfully, three times. He said Dole, severely wounded in World War II, "spent decades carrying fellow veterans and Americans with disabilities on his shoulders."

Former Sen. Elizabeth Dole rests her head on the casket of her husband and former Sen. Bob Dole (R-KS) in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol building, where lays in state, on Dec. 9, 2021 in Washington, D.C.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called Dole "a champion of those whose lives were marked by struggle."

Dole will lie in state through the day. A funeral service for him takes place Friday at the Washington National Cathedral. There will also be a ceremony at the World War II Memorial in Washington, and then Dole's remains will be flown to his home state of Kansas for ceremonies there.