On Monday, First Lady Jill Biden unveiled her first White House Christmas decorations. The beautiful display included a gingerbread village as well as ornaments paying tribute to prior first families, including Biden’s predecessors, the Trumps. In addition to the Christmas display, Jill Biden also hosted a reading party for Maryland children in which she read from her book. Biden read from the book she co-authored with granddaughter Natalie – “Don’t Forget, God Bless Our Troops” – while she and the students kept physically distant and wore masks to protect everyone from the spread of COVID-19.
Jill Biden revealed that the theme of the White House Christmas display for 2021 is “Gifts from the heart.” It’s a heartwarming display at a time when America is deeply divided along political lines. Thankfully, Jill Biden did something that every American who celebrates Christmas can support as it was beautiful and kind.
However, people were shocked that the Bidens’ honored the Trumps in their Christmas display. One of the ornaments features Donald and Melania Trump while they were receiving their official White House Christmas tree during Trump’s single term in office.
“I feel like I should be applauding you because you’re certainly the ones that made this house a home, so thank you very much,” Jill Biden told volunteers.
Jill Biden hopes that Christmas 2021 will bring people together. She wanted her theme this year to remind Americans that they’re all part of the same country and that this is the time of year to bring people together and celebrate joy and love.
Biden said that American holiday traditions are “as varied as we find the people who make up this country. But at the core of our traditions are threads that unite us all – faith, family, and friendship, gratitude and service, and love for our community. And when it gets difficult, when the pandemic keeps us apart, like I know how tough this year has been, but when we struggle to get by, or we feel like the weight of our lives is just too heavy to carry, these constants remind us that we are not alone.”
There are 41 Christmas Trees throughout the White House along with 6000 feet of ribbon, more than 300 candles, and over 10000 ornaments. The theme is “Gifts from the Heart,” which Jill Biden said came from the “small acts of kindness and experiences that lifted our spirits this year and throughout the pandemic.”
Jill Biden stressed unity in her remarks on the holidays. “For all of our differences, we are united by what really matters like points on a star we come together at the heart. That is what I wanted to reflect in our White House this year,” she said.
The Trumps were honored with an ornament in the White House Christmas display this year. One of the ornaments features Donald and Melania Trump while they were receiving their official White House Christmas tree during Trump’s single term in office.
What do you think about the White House Christmas display for 2021? Are you surprised the Bidens are honoring the Trumps?