"President Biden awards Medal of Valor to heroic first responders across the country"

President Joe Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland awarded the Medal of Valor to nine public safety officers, including two NYPD officers who were killed in an ambush while responding to a 911 call in Harlem. Biden praised the officers' bravery and sacrifice, calling them "the who and the what" of what law enforcement in the US should be. The ceremony also honored a Houston police officer, a Colorado police official, an Ohio sheriff's deputy, and three FDNY firefighters. Biden did not acknowledge recent clashes between law enforcement and communities but stressed the need to fund law enforcement activities.