Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Laying it on thick, Obama lavishes praise on Clinton at medal fete

President Barack Obama awards former President Bill Clinton the Presidential Medal of Freedom, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2013, during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)It’s no secret President Obama and former President Clinton have at times had a rocky relationship.
But both men were all smiles Wednesday as Mr. Obama bestowed the 42nd president with the Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.



At a ceremony at the White House, Mr. Obama praised Mr. Clinton for both his work in elected office and also his post-presidential efforts with his Clinton Foundation and Clinton Global Initiative.

“As president he proved that with the right choices, you could grow the economy, lift people out of poverty, we could shrink our deficits and still invest in our families, our health, our schools, science, technology. In other words, we can go further when we look out for each other,” Mr. Obama said, looking directly at Mr. Clinton as he spoke. “As we’ve all seen, as president, he was just getting started. He doesn’t stop. He’s helped lead relief efforts after the Asian tsunami, 

Hurricane Katrina, the Haiti earthquake. His foundation and global initiative have helped to save or improve the lives of literally hundreds of millions of people.”

Mr. Obama joked at one point he had been grateful for his Democratic predecessor’s counsel and advice “both on and off the golf course.”

The two men smiled and laughed as Mr. Obama gave Mr. Clinton his medal.

Via: Washington Times


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