Joe Biden pardons two turkeys for Thanksgiving: everything you need to know about this tradition | N18G

Continuing the Thanksgiving tradition, President Joe Biden pardoned two turkeys, Peach and Blossom, during his final holiday in office. Named after the peach blossom, Delaware’s state flower, turkeys symbolize resilience. This practice, which has become a symbolic gesture, has its roots in the 1870s, when Rhode Island poultry merchant Horace Vose began sending turkeys to the White House. Over time, turkey presentations evolved into a festive tradition, with public displays and decorations, such as the 1925 turkey donated by a Girl Scout in Vermont. Although President Truman was the first to receive a turkey from the National Poultry and Egg Board in 1947, he did not establish the tradition of pardoning. The formal practice of pardoning began in 1989 under President George HW Bush, marking a shift toward the humorous and symbolic ceremony we see today, with turkeys sent to petting farms rather than being eaten.