President Biden recently awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to nineteen worthies, celebrities, activists, and politicians (some faded, others dead). Fashion industry heavyweights figured prominently this year. Ralph Lauren was a deserving recipient. His brand sells America to the whole world. Vogue top editor Anna Wintour was also honored. Count me among those ignorant of her no doubt notable accomplishments.
Some are famous names: RFK, soccer great Lionel Messi, rock singer Bono, and actor Denzel Washington. Others were unknown to me, such as theater guru George Stevens Jr. and financier David M. Rubenstein. I have also never heard of José Andrés, but I was charmed by the notion of a chef being honored.
I encourage readers to check out the full list on the White House website. It offers an opportunity to reflect on whom incoming President Donald Trump ought to honor when the calendar turns to 2026.
By my reckoning, the first man on Trump’s list should be Patrick Buchanan. After a lusty campaign for the presidential nomination, he delivered a speech to the 1992 Republican National Convention that planted the seeds for Trump’s ascendant MAGA movement. Buchanan enjoys a further and noble accomplishment. He has been denounced as racist, fascist, and “extreme right” by all the Good People—just like our incoming president.
As long as Trump is honoring those wrongly dishonored by our establishment, he ought to award the Medal of Freedom posthumously to Richard Nixon. Our thirty-seventh president conducted foreign policy with exemplary prudence. He never would have embarked on the foolish enterprise of invading Iraq with the purpose of bringing democracy to the unenlightened.
Harrison Butker is perhaps too young to be honored, but what about Mike Ditka? He was a no-nonsense tight end who liked to knock people down. As head coach, he led the 1985 Chicago Bears to a 15-1 record and a Super Bowl victory. More notable, to my mind, was his jaw-forward style, on display during a 1985 game when he exchanged punches with his own defensive coordinator, Buddy Ryan.
In the businessman category, Trump should honor David Green, founder of Hobby Lobby. Not only has the wealthy entrepreneur been a generous philanthropist, he also stood up against the arrogance of the Obama administration’s contraceptive mandate. The cause of religious liberty owes a great debt to David Green.
Thomas Klingenstein is another worthy philanthropist. His support for the Claremont Institute created the conditions for the survival of those few intellectuals who understood the significance of Donald Trump at a time when people like Bill Kristol were issuing fatwas targeting anyone who dared to suggest the Orange Man was anything other than a mortal threat to Western civilization.
I’m sure Bono is a very good man. But his political moralism is a bit too precious for my taste. In the entertainer category, Trump should consider Ted Nugent. You gotta love his riffs in Cat Scratch Fever. I don’t claim he is a saint, but his support of the Second Amendment qualifies him for the Great American category. Like Buchanan, liberals love to hate him, which is another positive mark in the Motor City Madman’s column.
David Mamet is one of the great American playwrights of the second half of the twentieth century. He published a 2008 article in the Village Voice, “Why I Am No Longer a ‘Brain-Dead Liberal.’” In recent years, Mamet stood against BLM hysteria and has supported sane legislation preventing teachers from promoting LGBT ideology to elementary school children. Trump should honor men of wisdom and courage.
Joe Rogan is the obvious choice for the media and journalism category, as is Tucker Carlson. They helped break the stranglehold of our politically corrupt mainstream media, for which anyone who cares about the health of our civic culture should be grateful.
As long as we’re talking about journalists, I urge President Trump to honor Tom Wolfe. Any practicing journalist who reads Wolfe can’t help but weep. He was a giant. We’re midgets.
Those who know me are aware that I’m largely ignorant of contemporary film and TV. I was recently surprised to learn that they still made movies! But even I’m aware that Mel Gibson is the obvious candidate for a Trump-bestowed Presidential Medal of Freedom. We need a little of Mad Max in the White House.
I could go on with recommendations, not just for the Medal of Freedom, but for other presidential gestures. For example, I think Trump should pardon Anthony Fauci for his obvious crimes. But I’ll leave off with my recommendations to the incoming president. If readers have further suggestions, send them to ft@firstthings.com. I’m sure you have even better ideas.
R. R. Reno is editor of First Things.
First Things depends on its subscribers and supporters. Join the conversation and make a contribution today.
Click here to make a donation.
Click here to subscribe to First Things.
