Trump Picks Roger Clemens For Medal

What happened

President Donald Trump announced at a San Antonio rally that he would award former pitcher Roger Clemens the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. Clemens played 24 major-league seasons and won seven Cy Young Awards, but has not been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. His candidacy has been clouded by performance-enhancing drug allegations cited in the 2007 Mitchell Report. Former trainer Brian McNamee and prosecutors accused Clemens of drug use and lying to Congress; Clemens denied using the drugs, and a jury acquitted him in 2012. Clemens introduced Trump at the rally, then returned onstage as Trump announced the medal. Trump did not say when it would be presented.

How each side covered it

From the left

Only one left-leaning outlet we track covered this: Raw Story, under the headline “Trump fact-checked to his face by guest during rally: 'I don't think so, Mr. President'”.

From the right

Right-leaning outlets framed the medal as overdue validation for a baseball great denied by the Hall of Fame. Daily Mail highlighted Trump’s complaint that Clemens had been snubbed despite his record of accolades. FOX News emphasized Clemens’s own reaction, citing him calling the medal more special than his Cy Young Awards and World Series rings.

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Trump Picks Roger Clemens For Medal

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How each side covered it

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