Skip to content
RollCall logo

Politics

Trump to Award Retiring Orrin G. Hatch Presidential Medal of Freedom

Mitt Romney won retiring Utah senator’s seat

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)
Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)
By John T. Bennett
Posted November 10, 2018 at 10:43am

Donald Trump will award retiring Sen. Orrin G. Hatch the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the White House announced Saturday.

The Utah Republican is among a group selected for the honor that includes late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, rock music legend Elvis Presley, former NFL star quarterback Roger Staubach, baseball legend Babe Ruth and others.

Hatch “sponsored more bills that have become law than any other living member of Congress,” the White House said in a statement.

“He has led the way in confirming qualified judges throughout the federal judiciary in order to protect our constitutional order, and has championed religious liberty, fought against communism, and stood on the side of freedom around the world,” the White House said.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, the Republican nominee for president in 2012, easily won a race Tuesday to replace Hatch in the Senate.

Watch: Hatch and Alexander Play Piano, Discuss Songwriting Legislation

Loading the player...

Recent Stories

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, lost the runoff in the Houston mayor's race on Saturday.

After loss in mayor’s race, Jackson Lee faces decision

Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said recent rail investments are the largest since Amtrak was created.

High-speed routes biggest winners in latest rail funding round

The E. Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse in Washington.

Appeals court upholds most of Trump gag order in DC case

With Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s announcement this week that he will leave Congress at the end of the year, Hits and Misses takes a look back at his brief and tumultuous tenure as speaker.

Kevin Up — Congressional Hits and Misses

From left, House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith, and Oversight and Accountability Chairman James R. Comer hold a press briefing Tuesday on a President Joe Biden impeachment inquiry.

House GOP cites new Hunter Biden charges in impeachment push

Ronald S. Moultrie testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee during his nomination hearing to be undersecretary of defense for intelligence and security on May 11, 2021.

Congress must protect our servicemembers by reauthorizing Section 702