Donald Trump awarded country music singer Toby Keith the National Medal of the Arts when he was being accused for the second time without precedent on Wednesday.
The outgoing president presented Keith, 59, with the country’s biggest award for the arts during a ‘closed press ceremony’ in the White House East Hall yesterday.
Former White House press secretary Sean Spicer uploaded to Instagram an image of a Trump standing next to Keith, who appears to have a grim expression.
The ceremony, reportedly ended in ‘a few minutes’, came when the House, led by Nancy Pelosi, voted to impeach Trump for the second time for his role in ‘inciting insurrection’ in last week’s violent riots on Capitol Hill.
Although the president was unable to post about the ceremony on social media, as he was banned from various platforms, Keith, for his part, made no mention of receiving the high presidential honor on any of his official pages.
Keith, famous for his patriotic hits like ‘Courtesy of the Red White & Blue’, held at Trump’s 2017 inauguration ceremony, however, never publicly endorsed the president.
The country star spoke out shortly after the inauguration ceremony, defending his decision to appear, saying: ‘I do not apologize for acting for our country or the military’.
Former White House press secretary Sean Spicer sent an image of Trump alongside Keith during the ceremony on Instagram
Keith, famous for his patriotic hits like ‘Courtesy of the Red White & Blue’, performed at Trump’s opening ceremony in 2017 (above)
The reason for Keith’s silence is not yet clear. A representative for the singer has not yet returned a request for comment from DailyMail.com.
In the program notes for the ceremony, shared by Spicer, Keith received the award for ‘making extraordinary contributions to American music’.
“Coming from humble beginnings in the Oklahoma oil fields, Toby Keith has become one of the most prominent composers of his generation,” says the program. “His musical contributions have provided the country with powerful and exciting songs that captivate and inspire the nation.”
Blue grass singer Ricky Skaggs, Opera Star Mary Costa, longtime National Art Gallery director Earl Powell III and legendary war photojournalist Nick Ut also received the award.
In addition to playing Trump’s inauguration, Keith also played events for President George Bush and Barack Obama, saying that his decision to appear in each one was about America, not party lines.
Although he never endorsed Trump, Keith previously called the president – and his then opponent Hilary Clinton – “media whores” during an interview in September 2016.
– This is by far the best country you could ever live in, and we chose these two candidates to be media whores and go out and take care of the world, huh? he said during an interview at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas. He went on to call the election ‘fire in the trash’.
Keith made no mention of receiving the presidential honor on any of his official pages
His last Instagram post (above) was posted Tuesday, just a day before he received the honor
In the program note for the ceremony, shared by Spicer, Keith received the award for ‘making extraordinary contributions to American music
When asked in early August which candidate he would vote for in 2016, Keith said: ‘This election, I don’t think it makes a difference.
‘I cannot believe that there are 300 million Americans in this country and we have these two as our last two. It is absolutely crazy. ‘
Keith had previously revealed that he was raised as a Democrat in Oklahoma and was registered with the party until 2008, when he became an independent.
“I was a democrat my entire life. They kind of disowned me when I started supporting the troops, so I went and registered as an independent, ‘he told the Chicago Tribune. – I was never a registered Republican. It just keeps people off balance. They don’t know what to think. ‘
Before this year’s election, Keith was vocal on social media in urging Americans to ‘go out and vote’, regardless of their political affiliations or opinions.
“I just think everyone should have an opinion and everyone should vote,” said a tweet. “This is what we are building on.”
In his early years, Keith had been very active politically during George W. Bush’s terms as commander in chief. In 2003, he became involved in a public feud with the Chicks – formerly known as Dixie Chicks – after the group’s singer criticized Bush shortly before the Iraq war.
Keith performed at Trump’s inauguration ceremony in 2017, however, did not actually promise to support the president
Ricky Skaggs (above), who also received the award on Wednesday, has also not yet posted on his social channels about the tribute
The National Medal of the Arts is awarded to artists who “deserve special recognition for their outstanding contributions to the excellence, growth, support and availability of the arts in the United States,” according to a government website.
Ricky Skaggs, who also received the award on Wednesday, also did not post on his social channels about receiving the honor.
Unlike Keith, the blue-grass singer has praised Trump in the past, saying in 2016: ‘I believe Donald Trump is the right person in the right place, and this is prophetic.’
Skaggs also credited Trump’s ‘enthusiasm’ and ‘fighting spirit’.
“He’s not going to let anyone bring him down because he’s a bulldozer himself,” he said at the time.
Trump had previously awarded the National Medal of the Arts to Alison Krauss and Jon Voight during a ceremony in 2019.
Earlier this week, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick announced that he would refuse Trump’s Presidential Medal of Freedom, which he was scheduled to receive on Thursday.
Belichick, who was once a friend of Trump, cited the ‘tragic events of last week’ as the catalyst behind his decision.
“Recently, I received the opportunity to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which flattered me out of respect for what honor represents and admiration for previous winners,” said Belichick, who has been the team’s main coach since 2000, in a statement.
“Subsequently, the tragic events of the past week occurred and it was decided not to proceed with the sentence. Above all, I am an American citizen with great reverence for our nation’s values, freedom and democracy. ‘
Earlier this week, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick (above) announced that he would refuse Trump’s Presidential Medal of Freedom, which he was scheduled to receive on Thursday
Other former associates and organizations with close ties to Trump have cut ties with him in the past few days after the DC uprising.
On Monday, he was reportedly left ‘destroyed’ after the Professional Golf Association decided to remove the 2022 PGA Championship from his private club in New Jersey.
The president made history on Wednesday, when he supported the first commander-in-chief to face two charges.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will decide when to forward the article to the Senate, which must reject the charge or hold a trial. At least 67 of the 100 senators are needed for the sentence, which would require Trump’s removal from office.