Jon Favreau, a former Obama administration staffer and host of the podcast "Pod Save America," said this week that President Joe Biden "did not return the favor" by declining to award former President Barack Obama with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
During an episode of the podcast released on Tuesday, Favreau and his co-hosts, fellow former Obama aides Jon Lovett and Tommy Vietor, remarked on Biden's decision to award the Medal of Freedom to former Rep. Liz Cheney, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and philanthropist George Soros, among others, but not Obama.
Biden received the Medal of Freedom from Obama in 2017, shortly before the former president left office.
"Obama gave one to Biden, and Biden did not return the favor," Favreau said, prompting some laughter and Lovett to note, "That's interesting" and to say, "I guess they're not really on speaking terms, I suppose, after all that's happened."
Obama and his aides reportedly attempted to dissuade Biden from challenging Clinton during the 2015 Democratic presidential primaries. More recently, the Washington Post reported that Obama told allies that Biden should reconsider his bid for reelection after his poor performance during a debate against President-elect Donald Trump in June.