CNN
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President Joe Biden will award the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, to 19 people Saturday, recognizing a broad swathe of luminaries across politics, culture and the arts, including former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, designer Ralph Lauren, soccer superstar Lionel Messi, U2 frontman Bono and philanthropist and megadonor George Soros.
The medal is presented 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 a White House statement. Biden himself is a recipient, having been presented with the medal by then-President Barack Obama in the closing days of his administration.
“President Biden believes great leaders keep the faith, give everyone a fair shot, and put decency above all else,” the White House said in the statement. “These nineteen individuals are great leaders who have made America a better place. They are great leaders because they are good people who have made extraordinary contributions to their country and the world.”
Two prominent American political figures will be posthumously honored: former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and former Michigan Republican Gov. George Romney, the father of former Sen. Mitt Romney.
In remarks eulogizing Kennedy’s wife Ethel last year, Biden said he had “only two political heroes in my life: Dr. [Martin Luther King Jr.] and Bobby Kennedy,” while noting he’d decorated his Oval Office with a bust of Kennedy. The storied political family had made national headlines in recent months with the Kennedys’ second-eldest son, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., controversially chosen by President-elect Donald Trump to be the next Department of Health and Human Services secretary.
Biden has previously recognized a number of political allies with the award, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and South Carolina Congressman Jim Clyburn last year.
The president’s decision to honor Clinton caps off a long history of mutual admiration between the two Democratic leaders and comes after Bill and Hillary Clinton honored Biden with the Clinton Global Citizen Award in a surprise New York Ceremony last September. Accepting the award, an emotional Biden thanked the former secretary of state “for the way you have helped me, the way you’ve spoken up for me with such passion.”
“I can’t tell you, you can ask Jill, I – anyway, I love you. I love you,” Biden said.
The president will also recognize Soros, a liberal megadonor who the White House says “has supported organizations, and projects across the world that strengthen democracy, human rights, education, and social justice,” and famed Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour, who hosted political fundraisers for the Biden campaign.
Lauren, a design industry titan, is also among the honorees Saturday. Lauren’s clothing has long been a favorite of the Biden family, including first lady Jill Biden, who wore a Ralph Lauren design on the cover of Vogue in August, and first granddaughter Naomi Biden, who wore a Ralph Lauren dress for her White House wedding in 2022.
Celebrity chef, humanitarian and outspoken Trump critic José Andrés will be recognized for his work with the World Central Kitchen, which the White House says “has revolutionized the way food aid reaches communities affected by natural disasters and conflict around the world.”
In entertainment, actors Michael J. Fox and Denzel Washington are slated to be honored, along with Messi and retired NBA player Earvin “Magic” Johnson. Washington was scheduled to be among those honored in 2022, but he had to pull out of the ceremony after testing positive for Covid-19.
Last year, musician and humanitarian Bono joined Jill Biden in her box at the State of the Union address, where he was recognized for his work fighting AIDS and building support for the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, which celebrated its 20th anniversary last year. Bono and his U2 bandmates were also among the honorees for 2022’s Kennedy Center Honors ceremony. On Saturday, he’ll accept the Medal of Freedom.
In the field of science, Biden will recognize Planetary Society CEO and climate advocate Bill Nye and world-famous conservationist Jane Goodall. Nye has partnered with the administration in the past to further the Biden White House’s climate initiatives, recording a 2021 interview with Biden at the White House to push the president’s “Build Back Better” plan. A pared down version of the legislation eventually based as the Inflation Reduction Act after the initial bill failed to garner sufficient support in Congress.
Posthumous medals will be awarded to civil rights icon Fannie Lou Hamer and former Defense Secretary Ash Carter, while LGBT advocate Tim Gill, private equity leader David Rubenstein and American Film Institute and Kennedy Center Honors founder George Stevens Jr. round out the list.