Medal of Honor Recipients—PICTURES

National Journal Staff

More than 40 years after U.S. Army Specialist Leslie H. Sabo Jr. was first recommended for the nation’s highest military honor, President Obama awarded him the Medal of Honor in a ceremony at the White House on Wednesday. Sabo died in an ambush in Cambodia during the Vietnam War, after saving his comrade's life.

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Medal of Honor recipients

<p>President Obama awards posthumously the Medal of Honor to Rose Mary Sabo-Brown, widow of Army Spc. Leslie H. Sabo Jr., during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House.</p> - AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster

President Obama awards posthumously the Medal of Honor to Rose Mary Sabo-Brown, widow of Army Spc. Leslie H. Sabo Jr., during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House.

- AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster
<p>Obama applauds after he presented former active-duty Marine Cpl. Dakota L. Meyer with the Medal of Honor during an East Room ceremony on Sept. 15, 2011. Meyer received the medal for rescuing comrades and Afghan service members from an ambush in 2009.</p> - Alex Wong/Getty Images

Obama applauds after he presented former active-duty Marine Cpl. Dakota L. Meyer with the Medal of Honor during an East Room ceremony on Sept. 15, 2011. Meyer received the medal for rescuing comrades and Afghan service members from an ambush in 2009.

- Alex Wong/Getty Images
<p>President Obama enjoys a beer with Dakota Meyer on the patio outside of the Oval Office. Meyer is the third living recipient of the medal for actions in Iraq or Afghanistan.</p> - Pete Souza/The White House via Getty Images

President Obama enjoys a beer with Dakota Meyer on the patio outside of the Oval Office. Meyer is the third living recipient of the medal for actions in Iraq or Afghanistan.

- Pete Souza/The White House via Getty Images
<p>Obama shakes the prosthetic hand of Army Sgt. First Class Leroy Arthur Petry of Santa Fe, N.M., who received the Medal of Honor for his valor in Afghanistan in a ceremony at the White House on July 12. Petry lost his right hand as he tossed aside a live grenade during a 2008 firefight in Afghanistan, sparing the lives of his fellow Army Rangers. </p> - Charles Dharapak/AP
<p>Father Dan Dunham (left) wipes away a tear as mother Debra Dunham (center) holds the Medal of Honor awarded to their son, Marine Cpl. Jason Dunham, after receiving it from President Bush (right) at the White House on Jan. 11, 2007. Dunham, fatally injured when he jumped on an insurgent's grenade to protect his fellow Marines, was the second Medal of Honor recipient from the war in Iraq.</p> - Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images
<p>President Obama presented the Medal of Honor to Army Staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta on Nov. 16, 2010. Giunta received the Medal of Honor for his courageous actions during combat in the Korengal Valley, Afghanistan, in October 2007. Giunta was the first living recipient of the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War.</p> - Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

President Obama presented the Medal of Honor to Army Staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta on Nov. 16, 2010. Giunta received the Medal of Honor for his courageous actions during combat in the Korengal Valley, Afghanistan, in October 2007. Giunta was the first living recipient of the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War.

- Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images
<p>George and Sally Monsoor, the parents of Naval Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael A. Monsoor, hold his posthumous Medal of Honor after a presentation in the East Room of the White House on April 8, 2008. Monsoor was killed in Ramadi, Iraq, when he threw himself on a grenade to save fellow Navy SEALs on September 29, 2006.</p> - Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images
<p>Navy SEAL Lt. Michael Murphy (right) was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor on Oct. 27, 2007, for his actions during an ambush by Taliban forces in the Kunar Province of Afghanistan in June 2005. Of the SEALs pictured above, only Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Marcus Luttrell (center-right) survived the battle.</p> - Getty Images

Navy SEAL Lt. Michael Murphy (right) was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor on Oct. 27, 2007, for his actions during an ambush by Taliban forces in the Kunar Province of Afghanistan in June 2005. Of the SEALs pictured above, only Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Marcus Luttrell (center-right) survived the battle.

- Getty Images
<p>Paul Monti carries the Medal of Honor that was posthumously awarded to his son, Army Sgt. 1st Class Jared C. Monti, on Sept. 17, 2009. Sgt. Monti was killed June 21, 2006, in Afghanistan while attempting to rescue one of his fellow soldiers and fighting off an attack from insurgents.</p> - Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Paul Monti carries the Medal of Honor that was posthumously awarded to his son, Army Sgt. 1st Class Jared C. Monti, on Sept. 17, 2009. Sgt. Monti was killed June 21, 2006, in Afghanistan while attempting to rescue one of his fellow soldiers and fighting off an attack from insurgents.

- Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
<p>President Bush (right) presents the Medal of Honor to Army Sgt. 1st Class Paul Ray Smith's 11-year-old son David Smith as his mother Birgit (left of center) and sister Jessica stand nearby during a ceremony on April 4, 2005. Sgt. Smith, who was the first soldier in the Iraq War to receive the Medal of Honor, was killed while protecting the lives of lightly armed American soldiers on April 4, 2003, near the gates of Baghdad International Airport.</p> - Mark Wilson/Getty Images
<p>Tom McGinnis, father of posthumous Medal of Honor recipient Army Spc. Ross McGinnis, displayed his son's medal with pride following a White House ceremony in June 2008.</p> - Carrie McLeroy/U.S. Army

Tom McGinnis, father of posthumous Medal of Honor recipient Army Spc. Ross McGinnis, displayed his son's medal with pride following a White House ceremony in June 2008.

- Carrie McLeroy/U.S. Army
<p>Phil and Maureen Miller, the parents of Army Staff Sgt. Robert J. Miller, received the Medal of Honor for their son from President Obama on Oct. 6, 2010. Staff Sgt. Miller was awarded the medal posthumously for his actions in Afghanistan on Jan. 25, 2008.</p> - Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

Phil and Maureen Miller, the parents of Army Staff Sgt. Robert J. Miller, received the Medal of Honor for their son from President Obama on Oct. 6, 2010. Staff Sgt. Miller was awarded the medal posthumously for his actions in Afghanistan on Jan. 25, 2008.

- Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

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Medal of Honor recipients

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