White House Cites Philanthropy in Honoring Buffett

Warren Buffett, the billionaire investor and philanthropist, was named Wednesday as one of 15 winners of this year’s Presidential Medal of Freedom, says Bloomberg.

A White House statement cited Mr. Buffett’s promise to give 99 percent of his net worth to charity and his campaign for the Giving Pledge, which urges wealthy Americans to give at least half their fortunes to charity, in awarding him the nation’s highest civilian honor.

Also honored were environmental activist John H. Adams, co-founder of the National Resources Defense Council; Tom Little, one of 10 humanitarian workers murdered by the Taliban in Afghanistan during a medical aid mission in August; former President George H.W. Bush; and poet Maya Angelou.