[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book II)]
[November 26, 2008]
[Pages 1396-1397]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks at the Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation Ceremony
November 26, 2008

    Thank you all. Please be seated. Welcome to the Rose Garden for the 
pardoning of the National Thanksgiving Turkey.
    This is a tradition that dates back to the Presidency of Harry 
Truman. Just to be safe, I will be pardoning a second bird--[laughter]--
in the unlikely event the main act chickens out. [Laughter] Turkeys are 
not only the ones on edge this morning; you see, it turns out the Rose 
Garden is

[[Page 1397]]

Barney's turf. [Laughter] So the press corps is a little nervous as 
well. [Laughter]
    I appreciate the representatives of the National Turkey Federation 
who have joined us: President Joel Brandenberger, Chairman Paul Hill, Paul's wife 
Mary June. Today's birds were hatched on the 
Hill family farm in Ellsworth, Iowa. Paul's son Nathan and daughter-in-law Betsy, 
along with grandsons Collin and Connor, did a fabulous job of raising the guests of honor.
    I also welcome the children here from Cloverly Elementary School. 
And after I make my brief remarks, you will be welcome to come up and 
pet our feathered friends.
    This is an election year, so it is fitting that the names of these 
two birds were chosen through the democratic process. After a long, 
drawn-out election season, when the people finally spoke, the name of 
the ticket sent here to the White House was Pumpkin and Pecan. 
[Laughter] Pumpkin is right there. [Laughter] Pecan is in an undisclosed 
location. [Laughter]
    Pumpkin and Pecan have an exciting trip ahead of them. Later today 
they will fly to Disneyland aboard ``Turkey One.'' [Laughter] Pumpkin 
will be the honorary grand marshal of Disneyland's Thanksgiving Day 
Parade. Together, these birds will gobble the rest of their days in 
``the happiest place on Earth.'' I just hope they stay humble there. 
[Laughter]
    This is my final Thanksgiving as the President. Over the past 8 
years, I have been given many reasons to be thankful. I'm thankful to 
our men and women in uniform, and I am incredibly proud to have been 
their Commander in Chief. I am thankful for the armies of compassion, 
volunteers who feed the hungry and shelter the poor. I am thankful for 
the teachers and nurses and pastors and police officers and 
firefighters, and others who serve their neighbors and better their 
communities.
    I'm thankful for the wonderful and supporting family that I have 
been blessed with. I'm grateful to Laura for her 
love. I'm grateful for two Thanksgiving miracles who were blessed--who 
we were blessed with 27 years ago: Barbara 
and Jenna. I'm thankful for the fact that 
my mother is doing well. And I--[applause]. And 
this year, we're looking forward to having another place at our 
Thanksgiving table with a son-in-law, and I'm 
thankful for Henry.
    Most of all, I thank the American people for the tremendous 
privilege of serving as the President. In recent weeks, I've talked a 
lot about sprinting to the finish. Yet I've assured these turkeys they 
will not be trotting to their finish. [Laughter] That's because in 
keeping with a longstanding tradition, Pumpkin and Pecan are hereby 
granted a full and unconditional Presidential pardon.
    I wish all Americans a happy Thanksgiving, and may God bless you.

Note: The President spoke at 11:20 a.m. in the Rose Garden at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Henry Hager, husband of Jenna Bush 
Hager. The Thanksgiving Day proclamation of November 21 is listed in 
Appendix D at the end of this voulme.