Obama presents medal of honor

President Obama awarded an Army sergeant who risked his life to help fellow soldiers under heavy fire from Afghan insurgents with the Medal of Honor at the White House on Tuesday.

Kyle White, a Seattle native, earned the nation’s highest military distinction for his efforts as he and a group of American and Afghan troops were attacked upon leaving a meeting with elders in a remote mountainous area.

{mosads}“Today, we pay tribute to a soldier who embodies the courage of his generation — a young man who was a freshman in high school when the twin towers fell, and who, just five years later, became an elite paratrooper,” Obama said.

In the ambush, White was initially knocked unconscious by an enemy grenade. But after waking up, he rushed to assist his fellow soldiers, applying a tourniquet to one wounded warrior and pulling another injured marine to cover despite a wall of enemy gunfire. 

The president went on to praise White for his career after military service, saying it spoke “to the story of his generation.”

“He came back home and trained other young paratroopers as they prepared to deploy,” Obama said. “When he completed his service, Kyle decided to pursue a different dream, and with the help of the post-9/11 G.I. Bill, he went to college and graduated, and today works for a bank in Charlotte, North Carolina.”

White is just the 13th recipient of the Medal of Honor for actions in Afghanistan and Iraq.