Thanksgiving Turkeys Get a Second Chance

Every year, the U. S. president spares a couple of turkeys from becoming the main dish at Thanksgiving dinner. This tradition, which started way back in 1863 with President Abraham Lincoln, has become a fun and lighthearted event. The turkeys even get to stay in a fancy hotel the night before the big pardon. This year, President Donald Trump pardoned two turkeys named Waddle and Gobble. The ceremony happened in November 2020, right after the presidential election and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Trump joked around with the turkeys, saying, "Gobble, I just want to tell you, this is very important: you are hereby unconditionally pardoned. " But Waddle seemed to have disappeared, leading Trump to quip, "Waddle, by the way, is missing in action, but that's okay. " The tradition of pardoning turkeys became official during George H. W. Bush's presidency in 1989. Before that, some presidents like Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon also spared turkeys from their fate. It's not just the president who gets to pardon turkeys; some state governors do too. This year, governors from Colorado, North Carolina, Alabama, and Mississippi all pardoned turkeys with some pretty creative names. Trump also took the opportunity to talk about other things, like how he claims to have lowered prices and passed big tax cuts. He even joked about not telling a joke about Illinois Governor JB Pritzker's weight. And he made sure to mention that the turkeys were the first "MAHA" turkeys, which stands for "Make America Healthy Again. " But Trump didn't stop there. He also made some digs at Democrats Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi, saying he wouldn't pardon them "no matter what Melania told me. " He even joked that President Joe Biden's turkey pardons from last year were invalid because Biden used an auto pen to sign the clemency notice. Thanksgiving is a time for family, food, and giving thanks. And for two lucky turkeys, it's a time to celebrate getting a second chance at life. The tradition of pardoning turkeys is a lighthearted way to remind us to be grateful and maybe even think about the animals we eat.