President Trump awarded the Medal of Honor last night to Army Chief Warrant Officer Eric Slover for his bravery under fire during last month’s operation to capture brutal narco-dictator Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela.
“There were many heroes on that January raid to capture Maduro. Really great heroes. It was very dangerous. They knew we were coming. They were all set. But the deeds of one warrior that night will live forever in the eternal chronicles of military valor,” Trump said.
“Slover planned a mission and was the flight lead in the cockpit of the first helicopter,” Trump said during his State of the Union Address. “A big, beautiful, powerful helicopter. Was a massive Chinook carrying, as you can imagine, many, many American warfighters wearing the dog tags his wife Amy had blessed with holy water before he left. She knew it was going to be a rough one.”
“Eric steered the Chinook under the cover of night and descended swiftly upon Maduro’s heavily protected military fortress.”
That’s when the Chinook came under heavy fire.
“While preparing to land, enemy machine guns fired from every angle, and Eric was hit very badly in the leg and hip — one bullet after another,” Trump said. “He absorbed four agonizing shots, shredding his leg.”
“(Delivering) the many commandos who would capture and detain Maduro was the only thing Eric was thinking about then,” the President said.
“Even as he was gushing blood … Eric maneuvered his helicopter with all of those lives and souls to face the enemy and let his gunners eliminate the threat — turn the helicopter around so the gunners could take care of business — saving the lives of his fellow warriors from what could have been a catastrophic crash, deep in enemy territory.”
Despite his agonizing wounds, Slover then managed to safely land the helicopter. He was then able to hand over the next phase of the mission to his copilot.
“The success of the entire mission and the lives of his fellow warriors hinged on Eric’s ability to take searing pain,” Trump added.
Eric Slover persevered through severe pain and injury, and his courageous endurance ensured the safety of all those on his team and the success of the mission. As a grateful nation honors this true American hero, pray for his ongoing recovery from his serious wounds.
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