President Donald Trump gifted the new Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library with the congressional Medal of Honor bestowed upon the late president in 2001.
Trump told a crowd in Medora, North Dakota, on Wednesday that he would transfer the medal, which Roosevelt earned posthumously for bravery during the Spanish-American War, to the library.
“TR was celebrated as a hero and [was] eventually awarded the congressional Medal of Honor,” Trump said after touring the library. “That’s a big deal, and I’m thrilled to announce that just moments ago, 128 years after the Battle of San Juan Heights, it was my really great privilege to deliver his library [with] a very special little gift.”
Trump added that he personally removed the medal from the Roosevelt Room in the White House, “took it off the wall, brought it over, and we just presented it.”
“It’s going to be in your library now for a long, long time,” he said. “It’ll be displayed alongside the Medal of Honor earned by his brave son.”
Trump then quipped that he should award himself and his eldest sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, similar medals.
“We’ll have a threesome,” he said. “Ok, I’ll pick out one of the two. I’ll give them the congressional Medal of Honor for something, for their genius at hunting, and I’ll get one for taking on Russia, Russia, Russia, or something … I’m only kidding.”
Trump attended the library’s opening as part of his semiquincentennial activities, making the trip aboard the new and improved Air Force One.
“This week Americans all across our nation are filled with joy, and excitement, and anticipation as we prepare for one of the proudest moments in our history: 250 years,” he said. “By the way, on July 4, it’s going to be approximately 107 degrees out, and I’m going to go and I’m going to make a really long speech just to show that I can do anything.”
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Trump was accompanied on the trip by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, North Dakota’s former governor, who helped raise money for the presidential library.
“North Dakota transformed Theodore Roosevelt into a leader and conservationist who would leave an enduring mark on America,” Burgum said in a statement. “It’s where a young New Yorker found grit, purpose, perseverance, and crafted a conservation vision that would shape America’s treasured places for generations. The dedication of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library will show how Roosevelt’s passion inspired the creation of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, dramatic expansion of our National Parks and the stewardship of our public lands.”