re: #206 Colère Tueur de Lapin

Need Anymouse to weigh in on this debate.

I’ll jump in and right back out to weigh in.

According to the US Flag Code, the flag is to be placed at half-mast on the day of death and the day after on the death of a sitting senator or representative, and that person’s desk in the House or Senate is to be draped in black.

The relevant branch of government (in this case the Senate) can order a longer period (that was done with the Supreme Court when Associate Justice Antonin Scalia died), hence the flag is at half-mast at the Capitol.

The Department of Defense has no authority to order flags on Federal buildings around DC to be lowered, though they can weigh in with an opinion to the President if asked.

At the White House, where the flag is at full mast now, Trump has chosen not to lower the flag for the customary period (until McCain’s interment).

An example of that is Sen. John Glenn’s death. President Obama issued a proclamation for the flag to remain at half-mast until his interment. As he laid in state first in Ohio, then in the Capitol Rotunda, the flag was at half-mast for a long time.

obamawhitehouse.archives.gov (Proclamation of Sen. Glenn’s Death)

Trump has already made his decision - no proclamation. Trump doesn’t admit he is wrong, so if every government official in DC howls about this, he will not reverse his decision.

On the issue of what day the flag goes back up based on the Flag Code, his death was very close to sunset. As such, I made an executive decision in my town that it was after dark when he died (our time) and decided the flags would go back up to full-mast tonight.

Any state governor can also order a longer period for his or her state, and Federal properties within that state are required to reply. It is a bit difficult for me to check every state, but I know neither Arizona nor Nebraska have issued such a proclamation. (Arizona’s governor’s office has a proclamation up about John McCain, but no half-mast proclamation.)

azgovernor.gov

No Republican governor is going to cross Trump. It would be nice if Democratic governors did; you can call your governor’s office to find out if they will release a proclamation to lower the flag to half-mast (even if only for the day of interment).