Arizona congressman wants to strip Bill Cosby of presidential medal
Dec 31, 2015, 10:54 AM
FILE - In this Nov. 6, 2014 file photo, entertainer Bill Cosby pauses during an interview in Washington about an upcoming exhibit that will feature some of his art collection at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African Art. Cosby was charged Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015, with drugging and sexually assaulting a woman at his home in January 2004. They are the first criminal charges brought against the comedian out of the torrent of allegations that destroyed his good-guy image as America’s Dad. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
(AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
PHOENIX — An Arizona congressman said he intends to introduce legislation to strip embattled comedian Bill Cosby of a presidential medal.
In July, President Barack Obama said there was no mechanism in place to revoke the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Cosby or anyone else. Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) wants to see that changed.
“To continue honoring Cosby with this prestigious accolade would be an affront to women nationwide, particularly those who were victims of his horrific acts,” the lawmaker said in a release.
Cosby was formally charged Wednesday with a decade-old sex crime after a barrage of accusations from dozens of women. The former “Cosby Show” star and breaker of racial barriers was charged with aggravated indecent assault, punishable by five to 10 years in prison and a $25,000 fine.
While Gosar said it is important to remember that Cosby is innocent until he is proven guilty, the sheer number of accusers and newly-filed court paperwork are reason enough to take the medal from him.
“The shocking admissions of Cosby during a 2005 deposition, the harrowing accounts of more than 50 women of Cosby’s sexual assault and drugging, as well as Cosby’s arrest for three felony counts of sexual assault make him unfit to retain our nation’s highest civilian honor,” Gosar said.
Gosar’s legislation would not only put in place a process to revoke the Presidential Medal of Freedom, but make it a crime to wear or display the medal after it has been taken away.
President George W. Bush awarded Cosby the medal in 2002.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
