President Joe Biden will present the country’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, to former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D‑CA), former Vice President Al Gore, Olympic swimmer Katie Ledecky, and 17 other people with White House pageantry on Friday.
“President Biden often says there is nothing beyond our capacity when we act together,” the White House said Friday. “These 19 Americans built teams, coalitions, movements, organizations, and businesses that shaped America for the better.”
The medal is awarded to people who have made “exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private, endeavors,” according to the White House.
“They are the pinnacle of leadership in their fields,” the White House added. “They consistently demonstrated over their careers the power of community, hard work, and service. …