Tennessee U.S. Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) sent a letter to President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday urging him to eliminate the Presidential Medal of Freedom once assuming office.
Burchett’s letter comes days after President Joe Biden awarded 19 recipients with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, including progressive megadonor George Soros.
The Presidential Medal of Freedom was created to award Patriots who have done a great service to this Country.
President Biden has defiled the medal by awarding it to George Soros and Hillary Clinton. Let’s scrap it @realDonaldTrump. pic.twitter.com/zHNKgRL7UV
— Rep. Tim Burchett (@RepTimBurchett) January 9, 2025
In his letter to Trump, the Tennessee congressman expressed his “concerns” with the award recently being presented to the likes of Soros and former First Lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, arguing that Biden has “defiled the Medal.”
When it comes to Soros receiving the Medal, Burchett pointed to the megadonor’s previous conviction on criminal charges in France as well as his status as being “one of the Democratic Party’s most ardent supporters,” saying, “Mr. Soros is wholly undeserving of this Medal, and President Biden has abused this prestigious honor to award his corrupt political allies.”
Burchett said eliminating the Presidential Medal of Freedom would ultimately prevent “underserving individuals,” like Soros, from receiving the honor.
“The Presidential Medal of Freedom was not created to provide the President with a means to further his political agenda. It was created to award patriots who have done a great service for their country,” Burchett wrote to Trump.
“I strongly urge you to consider eliminating this award to prevent further executive abuse,” Burchett added.
President Harry S. Truman created the Medal of Freedom in 1945, and President John F. Kennedy renamed it the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963.
Executive Order 11085, signed by Kennedy on February 22, 1963, allows the U.S. President to recognize “any person who has made an especially meritorious contribution to (1) the security or national interests of the United States, or (2) world peace, or (3) cultural or other significant public or private endeavors” with the medal.
– – –
Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “Presidential Medal of Freedom” by George W. Bush Presidential Center. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
