Trump on Wednesday presented his eighth Medal of Honor, this time to the family of Army Staff Sgt. Travis Atkins, who gave his life in 2007 to save fellow soldiers from an Iraqi suicide bomber.
In place of Atkins, his son, Trevor, and his parents represented him on Wednesday. Atkins was initially awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, but it was upgraded to a Medal of Honor following a Defense Department review.
Atkins, 31, of Bozeman, Montana, was trying to subdue the suspected insurgent in June 2007 when he realized the man was attempting to detonate a bomb strapped to his body. Atkins then covered the bomber's body with his in a selfless act that officials said saved three soldiers.
"In his final moments on Earth, Travis did not run. He didn’t know what it was to run. He did not hesitate. He rose to the highest calling, he laid down his life to save the lives of his fellow warriors," Trump said the White House ceremony Wednesday. "In so doing, he embodied the deepest meaning of the motto of the 10th Mountain Division. He climbed to glory. Now Travis is looking down from above on all of us, on all of his fellow warriors, on his great family. Wrapped in glory, the loving glory of almighty God."
Atkins' son, Trevor, said it was an "honor" to accept the award of his father's behalf in brief remarks to reporters after the ceremony.