Trump announces plan to award Ben Carson the Presidential Medal of Freedom | World News
President Donald Trump speaks during the American Cornerstone Institute’s Founder’s Dinner at George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate in Mount Vernon, Va., Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025. (AP Photo)
President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he will give the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian award, to Ben Carson, the Press Association (AP) reported.
“Congratulations, Ben. He didn’t know this,” Trump said during an event at Mount Vernon for the American Cornerstone Institute, which Carson founded. “He didn’t know it. I hope he’s happy.”
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Carson, 74, is a former neurosurgeon who ran against Trump for the Republican nomination in 2016. He later served as Housing and Urban Development secretary during Trump’s first adminration.
The two men, once rivals, have since developed a close political relationship. Carson was at one point seen as a possible running mate in Trump’s 2024 campaign and worked as Trump’s national faith chairman during that race.
A strong social conservative, Carson has long spoken against abortion rights and same-sex marriage. He remains a popular figure among conservative audiences as a speaker and author.
The Presidential Medal of Freedom, created in 1963, is given to people who have made important contributions to the United States, world peace, or to cultural or public life.
Trump awarded the medal to 24 people in his first term. Since returning to the White House, he has already announced honours for two others. Earlier this month, he said former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani would receive the award, just days after Giuliani was injured in a car crash.
On 11 September, during a Pentagon memorial event, Trump announced that conservative activ Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated earlier this month, would be given the award posthumously.
