In a display of political theatre, President Donald Trump used the annual White House turkey pardon ceremony to take aim at his opponents, even going so far as to declare last year's presidential pardons for the birds 'invalid'.
A Political Pardon Ceremony
The 78th annual National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation took place on Tuesday 25 November 2025, with President Trump presiding over the event. The ceremony, a light-hearted tradition marking the start of the holiday season, saw the President set to pardon two four-month-old turkeys named Waddle and Gobble.
However, the proceedings took a sharply political turn from the outset. President Trump opened with a quip that directly targeted his predecessor, tying his criticism of former President Joe Biden's use of an autopen to suggest that the 2024 turkey pardons were no longer valid.
Suggested Names for the Birds
The political jabs continued as President Trump offered his own suggestions for what this year's turkeys should have been called. He proposed naming them 'Chuck and Nancy', a clear reference to leading Democrats Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi.
In a characteristically blunt remark, the President added that had the birds borne those names, he would not have been inclined to grant them clemency. This moment highlighted how even the most apolitical of White House traditions has become infused with partisan commentary.
The History of the Tradition
The turkey pardon ceremony is a decades-old practice that has become an American institution. The tradition traces its roots back to 1947 when President Harry S. Truman was first presented with a turkey.
However, it was President John F. Kennedy in 1963 who became the first commander-in-chief to technically grant clemency to a turkey, establishing the precedent that has evolved into the modern ceremony. What began as a simple gesture has grown into a media event that often reflects the political climate of the time.
The event, while maintaining its ceremonial purpose, served this year as another platform for President Trump's distinctive style of political communication, blending tradition with contemporary political rivalries.
