Joe Biden will depart the White House in little over two weeks. We shall not see his like again—if God is merciful, that is. The news of nineteen new Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients this weekend was yet another opportunity to cherish the unique disaster that this presidential administration has been. While not all the names on this list are bad, like the little girl with the little curl of the nursery rhyme, when they are bad, they are horrid.

            What is this award? First awarded by John F. Kennedy, it is, as the White House’s announcement described, “the Nation’s highest civilian honor, presented to individuals 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.” Having this in mind, it’s fairly easy to grade the Biden Administration choices. And, note, it’s “Biden Administration” as usual, given that even presidential historian Douglas Brinkley has recently admitted that this Administration is parallel to Edith Wilson running the government after Woodrow Wilson’s debilitating strokes: “In Biden’s case, after about year two, there was no there, it seemed.”

            While it’s often best to begin with the bad news first, in the case of the Biden Administration, it’s generally easiest to cover the good news first because it’s much shorter. Thus, who on Biden’s list seemed worthy? Two actors, Denzel Washington and Michael J. Fox, and writer producer George Stevens, Jr., fit that list. It’s pleasing and surprising that Washington, who recently was baptized and ordained as a Christian minister, was named by the religiously intolerant Biden Administration. Even for those of us who think Fox’s advocacy for embryonic stem cell research has been misguided, he is still a noteworthy American whose entertainment career has provided many great memories and whose personal persistence in the face of Parkinson’s Disease has been admirable. And Stevens, who helped create the American Film Institute and who was involved in countless stage and screen successes, certainly fits the award’s description.

            We can also celebrate two awardees connected to sports. Basketball legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson, whose genius on the court and philanthropic work afterward have made many Americans want to return his famous smile, certainly is worthy. As is David Rubenstein, who owns the Baltimore Orioles and who has funded many restoration projects for historic landmarks in the U. S., including the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial.

            Finally, one person from the world of fashion, Ralph Lauren, probably fits on this list. His philanthropic work has involved both research in the fight against cancer and also the preservation of the Star Spangled Banner—the original flag, that is.

            The posthumous awardees are so-so: black civil rights advocate Fannie Lou Hamer and Robert F. Kennedy, Sr., who both worked for civil rights and against organized crime, are worthy recipients. Ash Carter and George Romney, on the other hand, were no doubt good Americans, but not necessarily deserving of our highest honor. One is tempted to say that Joe Biden might even have personally chosen these, in the mistaken belief that they are still alive.

            A couple of living awardees really don’t belong: Bono, the lead singer of the band U2 and political activist—whatever one thinks of his own political and policy views—is not American. Nor is soccer great Lionel Messi, even if he does live in the United States now. Why exactly do we need to give awards to non-Americans?

            But what’s disturbing are some of the American recipients. Bill Nye “The Science Guy” not only has rolled over for unscientific gender theory but also was one of the most annoying and unscientific scolds the Covid Panic brought us. Anna Wintour, the longtime editor of Vogue, is mostly famous for being tyrannical enough to have had a movie made about her tyranny (The Devil Wears Prada). The White House website lists her philanthropic work and credits her as the “architect” behind the Met Gala. Given the usual offenses against taste and civilization reported at that yearly event, it hardly seems to weigh in favor of a Presidential Medal of Freedom.

            Jane Goodall has been lionized by many elites for her work with chimpanzees. But, like many of the elites, she is also for depopulation of the planet—to less than a billion. Her defenders always point out that she does not, like the Marvel movie villain Thanos, propose to do this from the top down, but to propose “voluntary” depopulation in our age is folly that deserves no award.

            But the choices that are most grating are the directly political figures. Tech mogul and activist Tim Gill has funded the LGBTQ+ movement all along, including unseating politicians who have tried to limit men in women’s restrooms. He is also one of the movers and shakers who turned Colorado deep blue and helped create the problems many see there.

Jose Andrés, the Spanish-born naturalized American chef who founded the World Central Kitchen, is a particularly galling choice. World Central Kitchen, an aid organization, was discovered last month to have 62 employees connected to Islamic terrorist groups, including some who took part in Hamas’s infamous October 7 attacks. Weirdly, he has also taken pictures with would-be Trump assassin Ryan Routh. It’s likely he was awarded only because of his open hatred of Donald Trump and his announcement last month that he would challenge Freedom Caucus chair Andy Harris in the 2026 congressional election.    

            Hillary Clinton is, surprisingly, only the second worst choice on this list. True, she funded the Steele Dossier that helped get rolling the deep state persecution of Donald Trump. True, she violated the Federal Records Act by doing official business on her personal email server and got away with it. True, her role in the Benghazi attack was atrocious. And the reception of money by foreign governments during her time as Secretary of State was….

            Ok, maybe she is the worst awardee.

            Well, she would have been had the Biden Administration not decided to give George Soros this award. Soros, after all, is the man who funded “social justice” DA candidates across the country over the last decade, including Larry Krasner of Philadelphia, Alvin Bragg of New York, Kim Foxx (Chicago), George Gascon (Los Angeles), and Chesa Boudin (San Francisco). True, the last three on this list have all been removed, but the damage done has been incalculable in terms of life, property, and security. A 2023 report showed that 40% of homicides in America take place where Soros-funded prosecutors are in office.

So, too, we could talk about Soros’s advocacy for open borders (including philanthropic money helping illegal immigrants avoid deportation), his advocacy for Obama’s Iran deal, and his funneling of money to pro-Hamas groups. . This is not a man who has contributed to the “prosperity, values or security of the United States” or the world. He is openly against America’s position in the world and he has blood on his hands in this country.

He is, however, the Democratic Party’s biggest funder, practically funding the 2022 midterms himself. Republicans ought to make his award a major issue in the 2026 midterms.   

            My maternal grandmother used to say of many situations that you have to laugh or else all you would be able to do is cry. This is one of those situations. Thankfully, Americans have risen to the occasion. Federalist writer Rich Cromwell observed that we can savor the fact that, though Obama gave Joe Biden this award, there is no return of the favor. Senator Mike Lee joked that Biden’s next awardees would be Disney villains “Scar from the Lion King and Jafar from Aladdin.” Perhaps the best suggestions were from Vice President-elect J. D. Vance. “Looking forward,” he tweeted, “to Biden giving the Presidential Medal of Freedom (posthumously) to Pol Pot and Count Dracula.” It was that “posthumously” that delighted many readers.

             Some might say that these awards are pointless exercises that are best discarded. Many of us are likely open to that position. They are yet another expense only slightly older than the Department of Education, the demise of which many devoutly desire. And if they are only opportunities for a laugh, who needs them?

            But we might consider whether our problems in America don’t have a great deal to do with having honor rolls that do not reflect honor deserved. The problem is not a want of candidates but public recognition of truly outstanding individuals. From our education system that rewards mediocrity to our entertainment and journalism awards, our nation suffers from honor rolls that include people who are D performers at best. On this list, Hillary Clinton is an F. George Soros is not just an F. He is a complete zero.

            America needs heroes and people whom we can admire. Too often we are given people who may have achieved a few things but aren’t worthy of our admiration on the terms laid out on the White House website.  Yes, there were some good awardees this time around. But we might say of too many of our awardees that, apart from their celebrity and their donations to the party beginning with a “D,” why are they there?

If we’re going to keep these awards, let’s make them something that brings Americans together and rewards real and outstanding merit. No more D honor roll awardees—in either sense of the term.  

David P. Deavel teaches at the University of St. Thomas in Houston. A past Lincoln Fellow at the Claremont Institute, he is a Senior Contributor at The Imaginative Conservative. Follow him on X (Twitter) @davidpdeavel.