We need a new President's medal -- the Eugene Goodman Medal

It's small potatoes among twice-impeached Donald's crimes, but this is still a little sickening. The old celebrity chasing conman has been handing out Presidential Medals of Freedom to cronies. He especially favors honoring past-their-prime white sports icons like Lou Holtz, Jerry West, and Gary Player. (Still active NFL coach Bill Belicheck had the decency to turn the award down after this month's Capitol attack; he's a smart one, that crafty old survivor.) 

In the last few months, Trump has honored champions of political vitriol and vituperation: Rush Limbaugh, his current Congressional pitbull Rep. Jim Jordan, and that rather stupid fabricator of lies Rep. Devin Nunes. The Nunes medal citation is a masterpiece of the Trumpian bullshit: 

Devin Nunes’ courageous actions helped thwart a plot to take down a sitting United States president. Devin’s efforts led to the firing, demotion, or resignation of over a dozen FBI and DOJ employees. He also forced the disclosure of documents that proved that a corrupt senior FBI official pursued a vindictive persecution of General Michael Flynn — even after rank and file FBI agents found no evidence of wrongdoing.

Congressman Nunes pursued the Russia Hoax at great personal risk and never stopped standing up for the truth. He had the fortitude to take on the media, the FBI, the Intelligence Community, the Democrat Party, foreign spies, and the full power of the Deep State....

 After this sort of tripe, the Medal of Freedom has lost much luster.

My friend Ayse Sercan, writing on Facebook, has an idea:

For the last week the video clip of a Black officer being chased by a mob of white men has haunted me. I'm no fan of the cops in general, but in no way does that make the situation of a bunch of violent racists chasing a Black man any better.

Then I found out he had deliberately led them away from chambers to protect the people inside. A Black man *used his Black body* to protect white people who too often forget how they have benefited from systemic racism and the service of Black people, the sacrifice of Black bodies. While some of his white colleagues were participating in the riot and taking selfies with rioters. Now he has to fear for his safety and that of his family because terrorists know who he is.

I think we need a new medal, the Eugene Goodman Medal, which would replace the defiled Presidential Medal of Freedom. [My emphasis]

Here's Goodman's story as told by Rebecca Tan at the Washington Post. Apparently he's not the sort of fellow who would want the attention, but he deserves plenty of thanks for quick thinking and courage. He probably averted many deaths.