President Obama Honors Bill Clinton, Oprah and 14 Others with Presidential Medals of Freedom

President Obama awarded a diverse group of 16 influential Americans with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor.

Obama honored the achievements of Americans ranging from Oprah Winfrey and former President Bill Clinton to women's rights activist Gloria Steinem and baseball legend Ernie Banks, The Washington Post reports. 

The ceremony, which took place in the East Room of the White House on Wednesday, honored "individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors," the White House said. 

Before bestowing the medals, Obama praised each recipient, speaking about Clinton last and thanking him for his help and advice, as well as for his current work helping victims of natural disasters. 

"These are the men and women who in their extraordinary lives remind us all of the beauty of the human spirit, the values that define us as Americans, the potential that lives inside of all of us," Obama said during the ceremony, according to USA Today. 

More than 500 individuals have received the award since the medal was established 50 years ago by President John F. Kennedy, according to the White House. 

"I hope we carry away from this a reminder of what JFK understood to be the essence of the American spirit," Obama said at the end the ceremony. "Some of us may be less talented, but we all have the opportunity to serve and to open people's hearts and minds in our smaller orbits. So I hope that everybody's been inspired as I have been, participating in being with these people here today."

Three recipients received the medal posthumously: Daniel K. Inouye, a Democratic senator from Hawaii who received the Medal of Honor for his service in World War II; Sally K. Ride, the first American woman astronaut to travel into space; and Bayard Rustin, a gay African American civil rights leader who promoted nonviolent protest alongside Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Inouye and Ride died last year, and Rustin died in 1987. 

Benjamin C. Bradlee, the former executive editor of The Washington Post, was also honored. Bradlee, 92, "oversaw coverage of the Watergate scandal, successfully challenged the federal government over the right to publish the Pentagon Papers, and guided the newspaper through some of its most challenging moments," the White House said in announcing the awards.

Banks, 82, played 19 years for the Chicago Cubs and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977. He is known as "Mr. Cub," and became known for his enthusiasm as well as his catchphrase "Let's play two!," which he said before games. 

Former President Clinton, 67, served two terms in office, from 1993 to 2001. He later established the Clinton Foundation, which works to improve global health and economies. When honoring Clinton, Obama said, "As president, he proved that with the right choices, you could grow the economy, lift people out of poverty, we could shrink our deficits and still invest in our families, our health, our schools, in science, technology. In other words, we can go further when we look out for each other." 

He added that since Clinton left office, he has "helped lead relief efforts after the Asian tsunami, Hurricane Katrina, the Haiti earthquake. His foundation and global initiative have helped to save or improve the lives of literally hundreds of millions of people." 

Winfrey, 59, is a widely influential television personality, actress and entrepreneur, and is recognized for her philanthropic efforts in bringing more opportunities to underprivileged young women. She has won many other honors during her career, such as the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 2011 and a Kennedy Center Honor in 2010. When honoring Oprah, Obama said that she is "living proof" of her can-do spirit, and that she rose "from a childhood of poverty and abuse to the pinnacle of the entertainment universe."

Steinem, 79, is a trailblazing leader of the feminist movement who is a writer, magazine founder and activist for women's rights. 

Other award recipients include Richard G. Lugar, a former Republican senator from Indiana; Loretta Lynn, a country music star; Daniel Kahneman, a scholar of psychology; Mario Molina, a chemist and environmental activist; Dean Smith, head coach of the University of North Carolina basketball team from 1961-1997; Arturo Sandoval, a Cuban jazz trumpeter, pianist and composer; Cordy Tindell "C.T." Vivian, a civil rights leader, minister and author; and Patricia Wald, a maverick federal judge who later served on the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague. 

Obama got some laughs when honoring Kahneman, who applied cognitive psychology to economic analysis and won a Nobel Prize in economics in 2002. Obama said that Kahneman "basically invented the study of human decision-making," adding: "He has also been called an expert on irrational behavior, so I'm sure that he could shed some light on Washington."