Politics & Government

Rep. Candice Miller Noted for Service in Support of National Defense with Truman Award

The National Guard Association of the United States awarded its highest honor, the Harry S. Truman Award, to U.S. Rep. Candice Miller Oct. 16.

U.S. Rep. Candice Miller (R) today received the esteemed Harry S. Truman Award from the National Guard Association of the United States (NGAUS). 

The Truman Award is the Guard Association’s highest honor. Miller received this award in recognition of her efforts to give the Head of the National Guard Bureau a seat on the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and to protect the Air National Guard from cuts in the 2013 budget which would have meant the elimination of the 107th Fighter Squadron of the Michigan Air National Guard based at Selfridge. 

Joining previous recipients such as Bob Hope, President Ronald Reagan and President George H.W. Bush, Miller is the first woman ever to receive this award.

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“I am honored and humbled to be the recipient of this year’s Harry S. Truman Award," said Miller, in a prepared statement. "Throughout my career in public service and particularly in Congress, I have been proud to stand with the Guard. I always remind myself that the first and foremost responsibility of the federal government is to provide for our national defense, and the foundation of our national defense throughout our nation’s history has been the brave service of the men and women of the Guard. 

"It is the responsibility of every member of Congress to hear that Minuteman call and to support the mission of our Guard. I sincerely appreciate and am humbled to receive this recognition from an organization that I value so greatly.”

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Retired Major General Gus L. Hargett Jr., president of NGAUS, and Major General Gregory J. Vadnais, Michigan Adjutant General, presented the award to Miller at the Selfridge Air National Guard Base Community Council meeting Oct. 16.

“The Truman award is more than just our association’s highest honor, it is recognition of inclusion in a special fraternity of patriots, people who have made a difference in the institutions that defend our nation,” said Hargett, Jr., in a prepared statement. “Candice Miller is such a patriot. Thanks to Representative Miller and her colleagues, the Guard now has a seat at the table and a voice in final Pentagon decision-making we have long needed. And the President now has unfiltered access to advice on Guard response capabilities during a domestic emergency."

Miller added her thanks to all members of the Guard and their families for "their service, their sacrifice and the sacrifice of their families who endure separation from their loved ones, as well as their dedication to our state and the nation as our defenders of freedom."


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