Obama Honors a Hero: 'I Really Like This Guy'

Salvatore Giunta receives the Medal of Honor
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 16, 2010 1:48 PM CST
Obama Honors a Hero: 'I Really Like This Guy'
This undated handout photo provided by the Defense Department shows Army Staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta.   (AP Photo/Richard Bumgardner, Defense Department)

The nation got a certified new hero today: staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta, who became the first living recipient of the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War. In presenting it today, President Obama paused to go off script. "I really like this guy," he said to laughter and sustained applause. He said the "humble" Iowa native is "what America's all about." The Washington Post has the full citation, with details on how Giunta saved two comrades under enemy fire in Afghanistan's Korengal Valley. ABC News has more details.
(More Medal of Honor stories.)

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