Trump jokes he ‘wanted’ Medal of Honor but didn’t qualify

President Trump joked Wednesday that he wanted to award himself with the Medal of Honor but was told that he didn’t “qualify” by advisers.

Trump made the remarks while recognizing Medal of Honor recipient and World War II veteran Woody Williams during a speech in Kentucky to AMVETS at the organization’s 75th annual convention. 

{mosads}“Thank you, Woody. You’re looking good, Woody. Woody’s looking good,” Trump told the audience.

“That was a big day, Medal of Honor,” he continued. “Nothing like the Medal of Honor. I wanted one, but they told me I don’t qualify, Woody. I said, ‘Can I give it to myself anyway?’”

“They said, ‘I don’t think that’s a good idea,’” Trump added as the crowd laughed.

“Great, great people,” he went on to state. “These are great, great men and women that get congressional Medal of Honor. Thank you, Woody.” 

The Medal of Honor is the highest award for bravery a military member can receive and is usually given to those who have performed extraordinary acts of valor.

Trump attended a military academy in New York as a teenager, though he has never served in the armed forces, receiving multiple medical deferments for bone spurs during the Vietnam War draft. 

However, Trump said earlier this year that he would have “been honored” to serve in the military, adding that he thinks he’s making up for the deferments with the work he’s doing as commander in chief.

“I think I make up for it right now … and I think I’m making up for it rapidly because we’re rebuilding our military at a level that it’s never seen before,” he said in June.