Trump's week in review: Iran deal framework signed, Multiple schools facing Title IX probes
4. Trump hosts Congressional Medal of Honor ceremony
At a ceremony at the White House Thursday, Trump honored three veterans with the Congressional Medal of Honor. He recognized Marine Corps Major James Capers, Army Major Nicholas Dockery and the late Marine Corps Colonel John Ripley for their acts of bravery in battle.
As Trump explained, Capers suffered injuries to his abdomen and leg in the Vietnam War as “shrapnel peppered his body in 17 places.” Despite the injuries, Capers worked to ensure that his fellow service members, who were also injured, survived. Capers loaded everyone else in a rescue helicopter before finally boarding it himself. While he considered deplaning because the helicopter seemed poised to collapse due to the number of people on it, his team “physically held him back, refusing to leave their leader behind.”
Trump detailed how Ripley, who also served in the Vietnam War, was tasked with placing explosives under a bridge in an effort to destroy it.
“He later recalled reciting a simple prayer: ‘Jesus, Mary, get me there, just get me there,’” Trump said. The president noted that Ripley’s efforts were successful, as the bridge “collapsed into the river” and “saved the hope of a free Vietnam for Easter morning.” Trump assured Ripley’s surviving family members, who accepted the award on his behalf, that “He’s looking down on you.”
Dockery, who served in the War on Terror, went out of his way to ensure the survival of his fellow service members as they were ambushed in Afghanistan in October 2012 and was credited with saving the life of one of the men by tackling him as he was in the path of a grenade. Dockery also exposed himself to enemy fire by going onto a roof and deploying smoke grenades to signal enemy positions, thereby enabling American gunships to rescue his platoon.
Ryan Foley is a reporter for The Christian Post. He can be reached at: ryan.foley@christianpost.com
