Merry Christmas To All!

We at Patriot’s Cave are dedicating our 2022 Christmas greeting to the spirit of Making Christmas Great Again. Even though our initials are PC (Patriot’s Cave), don’t mistake us for being PC. We celebrate Christmas and we wish everyone a Merry Christmas as a seasonal holiday greeting. We believe people should celebrate the festive season however they like and observe whichever holidays in whatever manner they choose, but we absolutely draw the line at anyone attempting to police traditional expressions of good tidings. Trump tweeted it best back on Christmas Eve 2017, “People are proud to be saying Merry Christmas again. I am proud to have led the charge against the assault of our cherished and beautiful phrase. MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!” We heartily agree, and we wish a very Merry Christmas to one and all, and most especially to everyone in our extended Patriot’s Cave Family!

Christmas was great when Trump was in the White House. We appreciate how he always remembered the troops during the holiday. He spent part of each Christmas Day while in office calling active-duty troops to wish them Merry Christmas and to thank them for their service. As is presidential tradition, he visited military medical centers as well as military bases around the world offering encouragement and gratitude. In 2018, Trump wished Merry Christmas to military personnel on a call and said, “I know it’s a great sacrifice for you to be away from your families, but I want you to know that every American family is eternally grateful to you, and we’re holding you close in our hearts, thought and prayers. We love what you do and love your work.” Earlier that same Christmas Day, the President and First Lady Melania Trump gave their thanks for the military with the following message, “This Christmas, we salute the brave men and women who serve our nation overseas. We send our love to the military families whose sacrifice helps keep our nation free.” We know that everyone out there in Patriot’s Cave nation is looking forward to 2024, when perhaps a newly elected Commander-in-Chief will stand poised, ready to help us make Christmas great yet again.

Now that we’ve reminisced about how your favorite president (and ours) celebrated Christmas, let’s take a look back at presidential Christmases of yesteryear. The presents are opened, the Christmas goose has been cooked, served, and consumed, and the carols have been sung, so please allow Patriot’s Cave to provide you with a little yuletide entertainment. It’s time to gather your loved ones near to join us for a little presidential Christmas trivia.

Question 1) During whose presidency did the tradition of decorating a tree in the White House begin?

Answer) Benjamin Harrison was the first president to have an indoor Christmas tree for his family and visitors to enjoy in 1889. Decorations included candles and toys for his grandchildren.

 

Question 2) Which president read A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens every year to his multitude of grandchildren?

Answer) Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) read the entire book in one sitting every Christmas eve to his grandchildren, as he had done for his own five children when they were young. He even went so far as to provide distinct voices for each character.

 

Question 3) Which president authorized the first official White House ornament, which was available to the public for purchase?

Answer: Ronald Reagan began this tradition ins 1981. Each year’s ornament honors an individual president or a significant White House anniversary, such as laying the White House cornerstone (which took place in 1792).

 

Question 4) Which president began the tradition of the annual lighting of the Christmas Tree on the White House lawn?

Answer) Calvin Coolidge did so on December 24, 1923. The balsam fir came from Coolidge’s home state of Vermont and stood 48 feet tall.

 

Question 5) Which president, with the help of Hallmark, sent out the first official White House Christmas card?

Answer) The tradition officially began in 1953 under Dwight D. Eisenhower. The front of the card was embossed with the Presidential Seal, as well as holly leaves and berries.

 

Question 6) Which first lady began the tradition of selecting a theme for the official White House Christmas tree?

Answer) In 1961, Jacqueline Kennedy began the tradition. The first theme was “Nutcracker Suite”, and the tree feature ornamental toys, birds, and angels modeled after Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker ballet.

 

Question 7) Who was the first president to have a Christmas tree decorated with electric lights?

Answer) Grover Cleveland in 1894. The lights were very patriotic – red, white, and blue.

 

Question 8) Which president threw an elaborate Christmas party for his children and grandchildren that included a grand dinner, dancing, games, and an indoor snowball fight using cotton “snowballs” made for the occasion?

Answer) Andrew Jackson hosted this over-the-top party, called a “frolic”, in 1834.

 

Thanks for joining us this holiday season, and thank you for being a member of the Patriot’s Cave community. We hope you had yourself a merry little Christmas and that Santa was good to you.

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