President Donald Trump announced on Saturday night that Ben Carson will be awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Carson, a former neurosurgeon who ran against Trump in the 2016 Republican primary before dropping out and later becoming his housing and urban development secretary, will receive the award during a White House ceremony at a later date.
“Congratulations, Ben. He didn’t know this,” Trump said in a speech at an annual dinner of the American Cornerstone Institute, which was founded by Carson. “He didn’t know it. I hope he’s happy.”
The award, established by former President John F. Kennedy in 1963, is the nation’s highest civilian honor.
Trump gave out the award to 24 people in his first term, including to the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, golfing legend Tiger Woods, and Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH).
Since the start of his second term, Trump has announced two other recipients for the honor, namely former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and the late right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated just over a week ago.
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While out of political office, Carson has since founded ACI, a think tank that promotes “conservative, commonsense solutions to the issues facing our society,” according to its website. He has also written numerous books, including most recently The Perilous Fight: Overcoming Our Culture’s War on the American Family.
Carson also had a role in Trump’s successful 2024 reelection campaign, appearing a few times on the trail and serving as his national faith chairman in the last couple of months before Election Day. He was earlier thought to be in the mix for Trump’s running mate, a role that ultimately went to JD Vance.
