Mike Johnson To Raise Capitol Flags For Trump, Potentially Violating Flag Display Code

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said the flags at the U.S. Capitol will be raised to their full height on Jan. 20 in honor of President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, a move that also may be contrary to the code governing Old Glory’s display following the death of Jimmy Carter.

“On January 20th, the flags at the Capitol will fly at full-staff to celebrate our country coming together behind the inauguration of our 47th President, Donald Trump,” Johnson announced Tuesday.

“The flags will be lowered back to half-staff the following day to continue honoring President Jimmy Carter,” he added.

Carter, the 39th president, died Dec. 29, sparking a bipartisan outpouring of public remembrances for his time in office as well as his philanthropic efforts. His body lay in state at the Capitol for two days in the Rotunda before a funeral at the Washington National Cathedral Thursday.

On the day of Carter’s death, President Joe Biden issued a proclamation ordering all U.S. flags at public buildings and at U.S. facilities abroad be lowered to half-staff for 30 days “as an expression of public sorrow.”

Johnson’s move will almost undoubtedly be welcomed by Trump, who has made no secret of his annoyance at the pleasure he said Democrats were deriving from knowing flags would be at half-staff during his inauguration.

“The Democrats are all ‘giddy’ about our magnificent American Flag potentially being at ‘half mast’ during my Inauguration. They think it’s so great, and are so happy about it because, in actuality, they don’t love our Country, they only think about themselves,” he wrote in a social media post Jan. 3.

“Nobody wants to see this, and no American can be happy about it.”

He also hinted, 11 days before Johnson’s announcement, that flags may not still be at half-staff when he is sworn in. “Let’s see how it plays out,” he wrote.

Johnson is beginning the 119th Congress with an extremely thin GOP majority — 219 Republican seats versus 215 Democratic ones — and has lately been vocally supportive of Trump. The president-elect helped clear a path for Johnson to keep the speaker’s gavel by endorsing him, and Johnson has often publicly approved of Trump’s Cabinet picks and backed up his public statements on social media.

The Capitol would not be the only locale where flags would be at full height on Jan. 20. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican and supporter of Trump, announced Monday flags at the state capitol and public buildings would be full-staff, saying “While we honor the service of a former President, we must also celebrate the service of an incoming President and the bright future ahead for the United States of America.”

However, raising the flag before the end of the 30-day half-staff period for Carter may violate the U.S. flag code, the section of federal law laying out customs and procedures for flying the stars and stripes.

“The flag shall be flown at half-staff 30 days from the death of the President or a former President; 10 days from the day of death of the Vice President, the Chief Justice or a retired Chief Justice of the United States, or the Speaker of the House of Representatives; from the day of death until interment of an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, a Secretary of an executive or military department, a former Vice President, or the Governor of a State, territory, or possession; and on the day of death and the following day for a Member of Congress,” according to the code.

Abbott, in his statement announcing his decision to raise the flag, said he relied on another section of the law — a shorter, weaker provision that says only that the flag “should be displayed” every day and lists various holidays and public observances, like presidential inaugurations, where it should “especially” be displayed.

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