CNN host Abby Phillip tried to diminish President Donald Trump awarding the Medal of Honor to war heroes during the State of the Union address on Tuesday.
Trump awarded the Medal of Honor to Army Chief Warrant Officer Eric Slover and Navy Cpt. Royce Williams for their bravery and service in the U.S. military, and Purple Hearts to two National Guard members who were shot in Washington, D.C. Phillip said during “CNN NewsNight” that Trump had to present the awards to show some unity since his speech was so divisive.
“Realistically the speech really told us where the president is, which is that the way that he wants to see the country may not be where the country actually is or where the country sees itself,” Phillip said. “But he utilized almost like these game show-type moments where you’re seeing these awards being presented to really bring these moments of togetherness that otherwise may not have been there. I actually thought it was very skillfully done, he awarded several Medals of Honors, Purple Hearts, he brought up the natural disaster in Texas. He had to do that because I think the rest of his message is a hard pill for Americans to swallow and I think those other moments gave him some space to balance out those two things.”
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Slover received the award for his actions during the capture of former Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro in January, while Williams earned his medal for downing four enemy fighters in a dogfight during the Korean War.
Trump also awarded the Purple Heart to Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe and Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, who were members of the West Virginia National Guard who were shot in Washington, D.C. by an Afghan national in November. Beckstrom succumbed to her injuries and Wolfe survived after being in critical condition.
Connor Hellebuyck, the goalie for the U.S. men’s hockey team, received the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his role in the team’s victory over Canada in the gold-medal game of the Winter Olympics on Sunday.
During the address, Trump told every congressperson to stand if they agreed that the government’s role is to protect U.S. citizens instead of illegal aliens. Democratic Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib shouted at Trump while he rebuked the Democrats for remaining in their seats.
Democratic Texas Rep. Al Green walked around the House floor with a sign that read, “BLACK PEOPLE AREN’T APES.” The sign referenced an artificial intelligence (AI) video on Trump’s Truth Social account which depicted former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama as apes.
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