RICHARD BLANCO

Bruce Springsteen, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Mindy Kaling and Gladys Knight were among the 22 people and organizations being honored. Louis-Dreyfus, who channeled Biden’s resume when she starred in “Veep,” jokingly sagged under the weight when the president placed the medal for the arts around her neck. The president surprised Sir Elton John with a National Humanities Medal during a White House musical event last September. Recipients of the 2021 National Medal of Arts:— Judith Francisca Baca, artist. Recipients of the 2021 National Humanities Medal:— Richard Blanco, poet and author.

President Joe Biden welcomed a high-wattage collection of singers, authors, artists and humanitarians to the White House on Tuesday to present them with medals — and then stole the show himself with a quip about seeking reelection.

Maine's governor is a politician — and a poet.

The official inaugural poem will be read during Wednesday's ceremony by Amanda Gorman, the countrys first Youth Poet Laureate. The 17-year-old has won a contest organized by the Academy of American Poets for which students under 18 wrote their own inaugural poems in anticipation of Wednesday's swearing in of President-elect Joe Biden. Applicants for the Inaugural Poem Project were urged to submit work that reflects “on the country’s challenges, strengths, and hope for its future," according to the guidelines. Knight will receive $1,000, and her work — along with the poems of two runners-up — will be featured on Poets.org and in American Poets magazine. The official inaugural poem will be read during Wednesday's ceremony by Amanda Gorman, the country’s first Youth Poet Laureate.

The country's next inaugural poet is an old pro at ceremonial occasions and she's only 22. (Kelia Anne/Sun Literary Arts via AP)NEW YORK – At age 22, poet Amanda Gorman, chosen to read at the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden, already has a history of writing for official occasions. Gorman is the youngest inaugural poet in memory, and she has made news before. In 2014, she was named the first Youth Poet Laureate of Los Angeles, and three years later she became the country's first National Youth Poet Laureate. She is calling her inaugural poem “The Hill We Climb” while otherwise declining to preview any lines.