US President Donald Trump announced on Monday that Rudy Giuliani is to receive “THE PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM,” the United States’ highest civilian honour.
The Medal of Freedom, established in 1963, is awarded to individuals who have made meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, or cultural or other significant public endeavours.
In a post on Truth Social, Donald Trump described Rudy Giuliani as “the greatest Mayor in the history of New York City, and an equally great American Patriot.”
“As President of the United States of America, I am pleased to announce that Rudy Giuliani, the greatest Mayor in the history of New York City, and an equally great American Patriot, will receive THE PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM, our Country’s highest civilian honor,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
Giuliani was mayor of New York from 1994 to 2001. He was once lauded as “America’s Mayor” for leading New York after the September 11, 2001, attacks. However, he was later sanctioned by courts and disbarred for amplifying false claims about the 2020 election.
In recent years, he worked as an attorney supporting Trump’s unsuccessful efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 US presidential election.
Giuliani was also criminally charged in two states; he has denied wrongdoing, the Associated Press reported.
For much of the past two decades, Giuliani’s public life has been defined by a striking rise and fall.
After leading New York through the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, he launched a brief campaign for the Republican presidential nomination and became one of the most recognisable political figures in the country.
But as Trump’s personal lawyer, he became a central figure in efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
Courts repeatedly rejected the fraud claims he advanced, and two former Georgia election workers won a $148 million defamation judgment against him.
In 2023, Giuliani conceded in court that he had made defamatory statements about a pair of Georgia election workers when he falsely accused them of trying to help steal the 2020 election for Democrat Joe Biden.
Giuliani, 81, was hospitalised following a collision on Saturday night in New Hampshire. State police said he was a passenger in a rented Ford Bronco driven by his spokesperson, Ted Goodman, when the vehicle was struck from behind by a Honda HR-V.
Giuliani suffered a fractured thoracic vertebra along with multiple lacerations, contusions and injuries to his left arm and leg, according to his security chief, Michael Ragusa. On Monday, Ragusa said Giuliani remained in the hospital but was expected to be released “soon.”
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