Critics Lash Out At Dr. Jill Over Christmas Tree Fumble

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Jill Biden
Photo Credit: "Jill Biden" by Gage Skidmore is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/?ref=openverse.

First lady Jill Biden’s speech explaining the origins of the White House’s Christmas tree selection was widely criticized after she announced where the fir came from.

Dr. Jill announced that the 18-foot Fraser fir chosen had endured a brutal hurricane in North Carolina, yet remained standing, so naturally, they chopped it down and decided to display it at the White House.

Biden claimed the tree as a tribute to National Guard members who worked tirelessly to rebuild communities impacted by the storm.

“The Cartner family lost thousands of trees to the storm. But this one remained standing—and they named it ‘Tremendous’ for the extraordinary hope that it represents,” Biden remarked.

However, the decision to cut down and display a tree celebrated for surviving a hurricane left many social media users completely miffed.

One critic remarked, “Thousands of trees were destroyed at a Christmas Tree Farm in North Carolina, during Helene. One survived and Jill and Joe Biden chopped it down. Then shipped it to the White House. Poetic.”

Further backlash came from a tweet criticizing the administration’s response to the disaster.

“After doing the least possible to help these poor people, many of whom still live in tents, this horrible administration uses their disaster for a political point. Stay classy Jill,” a user wrote.

Another commenter added, “I’m not sure which Jill Biden Christmas was worse – the creepy White House Christmas dancers last year or completely ignoring hurricane victims except to steal a tree from their community.”

Meanwhile, President Biden drew a different kind of scrutiny when he was spotted Black Friday shopping in Nantucket carrying a controversial book.

Biden’s purchase, The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine by Rashid Khalidi, critiques Israel’s Zionist movement, referring to it as “settler colonialism” and describing Palestine’s history as “oppression of one people by another.”

Khalidi, a Columbia University professor emeritus and the book’s author, reacted to the photos of Biden holding his work with this comment to the New York Post: “My reaction is that this is 4 years too late.”

The president’s holiday shopping trip included the first lady, convicted criminal son Hunter, and grandson Beau.

The day concluded with the Biden family attending a town Christmas tree lighting, where Hunter assisted an ailing President Biden onto a platform for a photo with a children’s choir performing carols.

Back at the White House, it appears there’s discontent brewing among staff members regarding a different kind of long-standing traditions.

Biden’s team is reportedly upset over his failure to uphold the custom of outgoing presidents taking formal “departure photos” with White House staff.

It’s a widely observed tradition for presidents to commemorate their team’s hard work with these keepsake photographs, making Biden’s apparent neglect of the practice a sore point.

One former staffer described the omission as “rather triggering,” explaining, “It’s just been one thing you can sort of count on as a reward for all of your service.”

Last week, the White House’s Office of Management and Administration attempted damage control via email, inviting current EOP political appointees to an event aimed at resolving the departure photo issue. Still, frustrations linger.

“Instead of everyone being annoyed by no departure photos, now it’s only half of the people who are annoyed,” said one Biden staffer.

Complaints have grown over younger, less senior employees allegedly being prioritized for these coveted moments with the president.

“It makes me annoyed that I’m even this annoyed, but it’s the principle of the matter and a coveted white house experience to get a departure photo,” one group chat pointed out.

Attempts to escalate the matter to senior officials have so far proved fruitless, with murmurs of staffers considering petitions to demand clarity.

An ex-official emailed former colleagues, venting, “These are the staffers who stood with Biden since Day 1, many since the lowest ebbs of the campaign.”

“The staffers who gave everything to this President, who missed anniversaries, birthdays, their own doctors appointments, knowing democracy itself was on the line, deserve at the very least a proper goodbye from the man who says he owes them everything,” the former official added.

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