00:00Anija Safdar's home address. Her family had to be relocated. The journal was
00:07kicked off of Air Force One. And now the Catherine Graham Award for Courage and
00:13Accountability, named for the legendary Washington Post publisher, and it comes
00:18with a prize of $10,000. This year's award goes to The Wall Street Journal.
00:30The journal's courageous reporting on President Trump's past relationship with
00:35financier Jeffrey Epstein triggered the release of the so-called Epstein files,
00:40thousands of documents that might otherwise have remained hidden from the
00:44public. And despite the president's threat of a lawsuit, the journal published a
00:49story about a provocative letter to Epstein bearing President Trump's
00:53signature. Trump quickly filed a $20 billion lawsuit against the journal,
00:59revealing reporter Khadija Safdar's home address. Her family had to be
01:06relocated. The journal was kicked off of Air Force One. But the reporters continue to
01:13file revelatory stories. Please welcome the winners of the Catherine Graham Award
01:18from The Wall Street Journal. Khadija Safdar, Sadie Gurman, Annie Linsky, Josh Dawsey again,
01:29Alex Leary, Rebecca Ballhaus, and Ryan Barber. Their colleague Joe Palazzolo could not attend tonight.
02:23That evening in April did not unfold as planned, but it ended exactly like it was supposed to.
02:302,600 guests plus hundreds of others who were working that night got to go home
02:36unharmed. And that was made possible by the brave men and women of law enforcement and the United States Secret
02:42Service.
02:51On behalf of every person who was inside that ballroom and every family who got to hear their loved
02:57ones say, don't worry, I'm okay, we thank you. One officer placed himself directly in harm's way and engaged
03:05the armed suspect. Even after gunfire struck his protective vest, he stayed in the fight and the attacker
03:12was stopped. I know many of us have wondered what if he hadn't acted in that exact way? What if
03:19he had
03:20waited a few more seconds? His courage that night reflects the core values of the Secret Service.
03:29As a commitment to safeguarding his country and community. They also shaped his career first as an
03:36infantryman and section leader in the United States Marine Corps. And since 2022, as an officer of the
03:43Secret Service protecting the White House complex and our nation's leaders. Ladies and gentlemen, it is
03:50my honor to present the WHCA President's Award for Exceptional Service to Officer Victor Gonzalez of the
03:57United States Secret Service.
04:00Thank you, thank you.
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