Trump is giving the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the top US civilian honor, to 3 dead people (Elvis, Babe Ruth, Antonin Scalia), a GOP senator (Orrin Hatch), and Miriam Adelson, the wife of GOP megadonor Sheldon Adelson, who gave $55 million to elect Republicans in the midterms pic.twitter.com/R90usNwUCP
— David Mack (@davidmackau) November 10, 2018
… or, at least, a nice Medal of Freedom. Per Esquire:
… Miriam Adelson won’t be the first billionaire given the nation’s highest civilian honor—most recently, then-president Barack Obama awarded it to Bill and Melinda Gates in 2016. But the Gates family and other wealthy philanthropists who’ve received the award tend to be honored for their charitable giving to the young, sick, or needy. Obama also awarded the honor to Oprah Winfrey, a vocal supporter of his presidential campaign. But supporting Democratic politics isn’t Oprah’s primary contribution to the world; she’s the first black woman to host a national daily talk show, she’s won 16 Emmys and been nominated for two Oscars, and she’s given widely to all kinds of charitable causes. Miriam Adelson, on the other hand, is known for giving big bucks to one primary recipient—the Republican Party…
And, recently, one primary recipient within the Republican Party — namely, Donald J. Trump. I assume the Medal is being awarded to Miriam and not Sheldon because Donny couldn’t be trusted not to fall on his knees in front of a successful casino mogul, and nobody wants to see that in public.
Trump’s tax cut is reported to have saved the Adelsons $700 million already, so those donations were a pretty good investment — about on a par with picking the right cash-back credit card, given the couples’ personal wealth — and the Medal of Freedom is just a shiny bauble decorating that taxpayer-funded gift.
The Adelsons bought themselves a medal just like they bought themselves an embassy and a political party. The list reads like someone tried to toss in all-American icons — Babe Ruth, Elvis — to cover up international corruption with domestic nostalgia. https://t.co/vsDIxlFLlb
— Sarah Kendzior (@sarahkendzior) November 10, 2018
I look forward to this Ocean’s 11 reboot. https://t.co/YYo3wVORkJ
— Daniel W. Drezner (@dandrezner) November 10, 2018
Kanye really blew that Presidential Medal of Freedom at the last minute.
— Schooley (@Rschooley) November 10, 2018
Late Night Open Thread: The Price of FREEDUMB!Post + Comments (39)