Elvis Presley and the Medal of Freedom: How would the King have felt about this honour from Trump? By Clémence Michallon
In November 2018, Trump awarded Presley the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In the Independent article, author Clémence Michallon explores how the icon would react to receiving the honor from President Trump. Michallon discusses that when asked of his political opinions on the draft and women's movements. Presley politely refused to comment. However he personally visited President Nixon to give him a gift and express his interest in helping with the war on drugs, believing his ability to reach all ages would help with drug prevention. Presley had also mentioned his dislike for the Beatles as he thought they promoted an anti-American ideology. Based on his avid support for Nixon, law enforcement and war against drugs, Elvis Presley appeared to be much more conservative than his entertainment industry counterparts at the time. Because of this, the Independent thought that Elvis wouldn't mind receiving the award from Trump.
The article references local Memphis paper, The Commercial Appeal's comparison of Trump's meeting with Kayne West to this Nixon meeting with Presley. Just as Nixon met with Elvis, Trump interacts with many celebrities such as Meryl Streep, Anna Wintour and Chrissy Teigen. While these interactions aren't necessarily as good-natured as Nixon's with Presley, they do illustrate the still ever present connection between politics and the entertainment industry.
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