A week after granting “amnesty” to nearly 5 million illegal immigrants, President Obama couldn’t resist a comparison Wednesday as he engaged in the traditional presidential ritual of pardoning two Thanksgiving turkeys.
“I am here to announce what I’m sure will be the most talked-about executive action this month,” Mr. Obama joked at the White House, sparing the lives of two large turkeys named Mac and Cheese.
“Today I am taking an action fully within my legal authority, the same kind of action taken by Democrat and Republican presidents before me, to spare the lives of two turkeys, Mac and Cheese, from a terrible and delicious fate,” he said.
The audience in the grand foyer of the White House laughed uproariously at the president’s comparison. Mr. Obama wasn’t finished injecting a note of politics into the event.
“I know some will call this ’amnesty,’” the president said. “But don’t worry, there’s plenty of turkey to go around.”
The president approached the table where Cheese was perched, and announced, “You are hereby pardoned from the Thanksgiving dinner table. Congratulations.”
“He looks pretty happy about it,” Mr. Obama said to the audience. “Turkeys don’t have the best-looking heads. You know what I’m saying?”
The turkeys were raised on a farm near Fort Recovery, Ohio. Cheese won the title of “National Turkey” in online balloting.
The birds will spend the rest of their days at Morven Park in Leesburg, Virginia. In previous years, the spared turkeys have gone to live at George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate.
The president was accompanied by daughters Sasha and Malia. The event was moved indoors because of rain and snow in Washington.
Later Wednesday, Mr. Obama and his family took part in a service project, handing out food to low-income residents at Bread for the City, a food pantry in southeast Washington. The president wished people “Happy Thanksgiving” as they filed past him, and he handed them plastic bags filled with sweet potatoes.
First lady Michelle Obama handed out turnips, while their daughters distributed cranberries, green beans and Hershey’s kisses. Mrs. Obama’s mother, Marian Robinson, handed out fresh bread.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.