WASHINGTON — Less than two months ago, Eric Slover was a member of the U.S. special forces whose identity was shielded from the public as he secretly prepared for a high-stakes raid to capture the president of Venezuela.
On Tuesday night, he appeared in the House gallery during President Donald Trump’s nationally televised State of the Union address to receive the Medal of Honor. The 45-year-old Army pilot had sustained multiple gunshot wounds in his leg during the raid in Caracas shortly after the new year.
“The success of the entire mission and the lives of his fellow warriors hinge on Eric’s ability to take searing pain,” Trump said. “Chief Warrant Officer Slover is still recovering from his serious movement, but I am thrilled to say that he is here tonight with his wife, Amy.”
That night Trump also awarded a Medal of Honor to a 100-year-old retired Navy fighter pilot for his service in the Korean War. “He was a legend long before this evening,” Trump said of Royce Williams, who also served in World War II and Vietnam.
Both men were recognized for their valor and skill in battles that unfolded generations apart.
Trump’s decision to award Williams and Slover with the Medal of Honor during his State of the Union address, rather than in a White House ceremony that’s typically held for recipients, was unusual, and spotlighted their service for a vast audience. It also allowed him to showcase the U.S. military in the type of camera-ready moments he peppered throughout his speech on Tuesday.
Trump surprised a Venezuelan woman in the audience by announcing that her uncle, who had been held as a political prisoner by the Nicolás Maduro regime, had been freed and was also there. Lawmakers applauded as she and her uncle embraced. Trump also arranged for the U.S. hockey team to file into the House chamber, as lawmakers chanted “U-S-A, U-S-A.” The president also awarded the team’s goalie the highest civilian honor — the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
“I’ve never seen a goaltender play as well as goalie Connor Hellebuyck,” Trump said. “What a special job you did. What special champions you are. Thank you very much.”
Slover’s award was notable in part for how fresh the battle he waged was for him, still recovering from his wounds, and for Americans watching as Army Lt. Gen. Jonathan Braga put the medal around his neck.
While Williams waited more than 73 years to receive the Medal of Honor for his combat feats, Slover was nominated and received the award just seven weeks after the mission for which he earned it.
On Jan. 3, Slover flew the lead helicopter in a highly perilous operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, in Caracas. He was shot in by Venezuelan security forces as he attempted to land the Army Chinook helicopter he was flying to deploy U.S. commandos for the mission.
“Eric maneuvered his helicopter with all of those lives and souls to face the enemy, and let his gunners eliminate the threat, turn the helicopter around so the gunners could take care of business, saving the lives of his fellow warriors from what could have been a catastrophic crash deep in enemy territory,” Trump said, describing Slover’s injuries and that of his co-pilot in vivid detail.
Slover enlisted in the Army in August 2005, according to a spokesperson for U.S. Army Special Operations Command. The spokesperson said that after he completed initial training, he attended Warrant Officer Candidate School and flight school where he became a CH-47, or Chinook, pilot.
More recently, Slover served in a specialized unit known as the Night Stalkers. Often troops serving in the most sensitive roles do not disclose their jobs or identities publicly because it could make them a target for retribution from groups they have targeted.
The fact that Slover served as a helicopter pilot supporting the commandos, rather than being on the ground himself during the raid in Caracas, potentially lessens any personal danger to him or his family by having his name and face revealed so publicly at the president’s speech, former officials said.
Slover is the only member of his unit who’s expected to be awarded publicly for their role in the Venezuela operation. Trump said Tuesday night that “10 of Eric’s fellow warriors from that incredible night of victory will also be receiving medals at a private ceremony that will soon be held at the White House.”
The Medal of Honor is awarded to a service member who “distinguishes himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty,” according to the Medal of Honor Society website.
Criteria for receiving the medal include being engaged in action against an enemy of the United States, military operations involving conflict with an opposing foreign force or while in service with friendly foreign forces engaged in an armed conflict against an opposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party, according to the website.
Only one woman has received the Medal of Honor, an Army surgeon in 1865.
The process for awarding a Medal of Honor can be lengthy and sometimes it takes years, depending on when the combat actions occurred. The more time that has lapsed, the higher probability there is that witnesses and other service members who need to be interviewed are retired, dead or simply difficult to locate, according to defense officials.
Typically, once a recommendation for a service member to receive the award has been approved up the military chain of command, each department inside the Pentagon then signs off on the packet before it goes to the president for final approval.
