Marine Dakota Meyer receives Medal of Honor at White House

Marine receives Medal of Honor at White House
By the CNN Wire Staff
September 15, 2011 6:09 p.m. EDT

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
"You did your duty above and beyond," President Obama says
Dakota Meyer is the first living Marine recipient from the current war theaters
The U.S. military says Meyer saved the lives of 13 U.S. and 23 Afghan personnel
Meyer had a beer with Obama on Wednesday

Washington (CNN) -- A Marine who defied orders and braved a blizzard of enemy fire to recover wounded and dead fellow American and Afghan troops during a six-hour firefight in Afghanistan received the Medal of Honor Thursday from President Barack Obama.

"I know that you've grappled with the grief of that day, that you have said that your efforts were somehow a failure because your teammates didn't come home," Obama told Dakota Meyer, who became the first living Marine to be recognized with the nation's highest military honor for actions in Afghanistan or Iraq.

"But, as your commander-in-chief, I want you to know it's quite the opposite. You did your duty above and beyond, and you kept the faith with the highest traditions of the Marine Corps that you love."

"The award honors the men who gave their lives that day, and the men who were in that fight," Meyer said, according to a Marine newsletter. "I didn't do anything more than any other Marine would. I was put in an extraordinary circumstance, and I just did my job."
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