[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 48 (Monday, December 2, 2002)]
[Pages 2097-2098]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at the Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation Ceremony

November 26, 2002

    Good afternoon, and welcome to the Rose Garden. I'm glad you all are 
here.

[[Page 2098]]

    I see the turkey standing there. [Laughter] He looks a little 
nervous, doesn't he? [Laughter] He probably thinks he's going to have a 
press conference. [Laughter]
    I really appreciate you coming to watch me give this bird a 
Presidential pardon. I'm especially glad to see all the young people who 
are here. Thank you for coming--and such wonderful looking costumes. We 
welcome the Boys and Girls Clubs, the Boy Scouts, and school students 
from the Washington, DC, area. Thanks for coming to the White House.
    I wish my dog Barney was here. [Laughter] But I'm afraid Barney 
would have met his match with that turkey. [Laughter] So we kept him 
inside.
    I want to thank the Secretary of Agriculture for coming. Ann, it's 
great to see you. I appreciate all our distinguished guests for being 
here. I particularly want to thank Ron Prestage, who is the chairman of 
the National Turkey Federation. It turns out his dad, Bill, was the 
chairman of the National Turkey Federation. We kind of like father-and-
son combos around here. [Laughter] It's also good to have Alice Johnson 
with us as well. Thank you all for coming.
    The Thanksgiving proclamation which I signed this morning is a 
Presidential tradition which began with George Washington. The days of 
Thanksgiving are an American tradition. We've observed this tradition 
since the Pilgrims. Americans have always been a grateful people: We're 
grateful for our freedom; we're grateful for our families; we're 
grateful for our beautiful country.
    Each year at Thanksgiving, we gather in that spirit to count our 
blessings and to share those blessings with our families and with 
others. On this holiday, American families will be thinking of loved 
ones far from home, especially members of our military, who defend our 
country.
    We remember those in other lands who suffer under oppression, who 
long for freedom, and we pray that they might one day live in a world at 
peace and in a free society. And in this Nation of many faiths, we ask 
that the almighty God continue to bless us and to watch over us.
    And now, as we look to our national day of Thanksgiving, I have the 
honor of carrying out an important Presidential tradition. The bird's 
name is Katie. [Laughter] Ron, it was awfully nice of you to name that 
bird after your daughter. It's a high honor to be named--to have that 
turkey named after your child. And it's a fine looking turkey. 
[Laughter]
    By virtue of this pardon, Katie is on her way not to the dinner 
table but to Kidwell Farm in Herndon, Virginia. There she'll live out 
her days as safe and comfortable as she can be.
    Thank you all for coming. Happy Thanksgiving. I look forward to 
having a conversation with Katie. Let's do it.

[At this point, the President greeted audience members.]

    All right, thank you all for coming. Happy Thanksgiving.

Note: The President spoke at 1:26 p.m. in the Rose Garden at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Alice Johnson, president, National 
Turkey Federation.