Grab your Kleenex because this one is a doozy!
President Barack Obama surprised Vice President Joe Biden by awarding him the Presidential Medal of Freedom at a White House ceremony on Thursday.
VP Biden, who was in complete shock, immediately turned his back and grabbed his handkerchief out of his back pocket to wipe is flowing tears.
Via Rolling Stone:
Obama also bestowed the medal with an additional level of veneration, marking the first time he has awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom With Distinction during his White House tenure. The past three presidents have only given such an honor three times, with Pope John Paul II, President Ronald Reagan and General Colin Powell receiving the citation.
In a citation read by an aide, Biden was lauded for his nearly 50 years of public service. “With his charm, candor, unabashed optimism and deep and abiding patriotism, Joe Biden has garnered the respect and esteem of colleagues of both parties, and the friendship of people across the nation and around the world,” the aide said.
Watch the beautiful ceremony below.
What a beautiful example of friendship between two extraordinary men.
Thank you, President Obama and VP Biden for your service.
