By Alex Gangitano and Thomas McKinless

Congress honored the “foot soldiers” of the civil rights marches from Selma, Ala., to Montgomery in March 1965 on Wednesday with the Congressional Gold Medal, with the ceremony providing a rare bipartisan moment for a place riven with partisan strife. Sen. Jeff Sessions, who sponsored the Senate version with Sen. Cory Booker, and was born in Hybart, near Selma, reflected on the complicated history of his state in very personal terms during his remarks at the Capitol’s Emancipation Hall. “Certainly I feel like I should have stepped forward more,” he said.