Former Vice President Mike Pence has been awarded the annual John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award for his actions in the ceremonial duty of conducting Congress' certification of the 2020 presidential election results.
The certification process on Jan. 6, 2021, was interrupted by protesters who entered the U.S. Capitol building, and Pence had resisted calls from President Donald Trump to delay the certification because of allegations widespread voter fraud.
Pence will receive the award, given by the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum "to public servants for making a courageous decision of conscience without regard for the personal or professional consequences" in a ceremony May 4 in Boston.
Caroline Kennedy, the lone surviving child of President Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline, and her son Jack Schlossberg will present the award; they sit on the committee that selects the award's recipients.
"Political courage is not outdated in the United States," Kennedy and Schlossberg said in a news release. "At every level of government, leaders are putting country first and not backing down. Despite our political differences, it is hard to imagine an act of greater consequence than Vice President Pence's decision to certify the 2020 presidential election during an attack on the U.S. Capitol.
"Upholding his oath to the Constitution and following his conscience, the Vice President put his life, career, and political future on the line. His decision is an example of President Kennedy's belief that an act of political courage can change the course of history."
Pence has been an outspoken critic of Trump since their 2020 election loss. Among the award's most recent recipients have been other Trump critics, including former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., former Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. Other recipients included former Presidents Gerald Ford, George H.W. Bush, and Barack Obama, as well as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
"I am deeply humbled and honored to be the recipient of the Kennedy Profile in Courage Award," Pence said in a statement released by the library and museum. "I have been inspired by the life and words of President John F. Kennedy since my youth and am honored to join the company of so many distinguished Americans who have received this recognition in the past."
The award is a silver lantern symbolizing a beacon of hope, and was designed by Caroline Kennedy's husband, Edwin Schlossberg, according to the JFK library and museum. It is named for the 35th president's 1957 Pulitzer-Prize winning book, "Profiles in Courage," which recounted the stories of eight U.S. senators "who risked their careers, incurring the wrath of constituents or powerful interest groups, by taking principled stands for unpopular positions."
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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