Middleboro Review 2: POLITICO Nightly: Great moments in Thanksgiving politics

Thursday, November 23, 2023

POLITICO Nightly: Great moments in Thanksgiving politics

BY MIA MCCARTHY , CALDER MCHUGH AND CHARLIE MAHTESIAN

Presented by

In this image rendered from video, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin speaks during an interview on Nov. 20, 2008 at Triple D Farm & Hatchery outside Wasilla, Alaska. As Palin answered questions, cameras from the Anchorage Daily News and others showed the bloody work of an employee, right, slaughtering birds behind the former Republican vice presidential candidate. | KARE-TV/AP

TURKEY TALES — Washington might be shuttered as electeds rush back to their states and districts to consider their political futures and plot out their plans for the rest of the year . But politics never sleeps, and there’s typically more action around Thanksgiving than just the clemency granted to a few lucky turkeys (among the 46 million killed for the holiday ).

For your holiday entertainment, Nightly presents six of the most memorable Thanksgiving-related political moments, just in time for your dinner table conversations.

1939: President Franklin Delano Roosevelt mixes up the dates — on purpose

Before 1939, Thanksgiving was always held on the last Thursday of November. That was until President Franklin Delano Roosevelt — in an attempt to stimulate the economy by adding more days between Thanksgiving and Christmas — moved Turkey Day a week earlier on Nov. 23. The change was met with backlash across the country, with a large group of Republican governors calling Nov. 23 “Franksgiving” after the president and declaring their states would celebrate Thanksgiving on the original date, Nov. 30.

So when November finally rolled around, the U.S. was divided: 23 of the 48 states celebrated on “Franksgiving”, while the rest celebrated on the original date (plus a few states celebrating on both days). The controversy went well past the Thanksgiving season, causing FDR to reverse his decision and sign a joint resolution declaring the holiday on the fourth Thursday of November, as opposed to the last Thursday.

1987: President Ronald Reagan turns a grilling into a pardon

When the National Turkey Federation started donating two birds to the White House in 1947, President Harry Truman sized up the birds and promptly ate them. This continued with little fanfare (JFK once sent a bird back to let him keep growing) until 1987, when Reagan was mired in the Iran-Contra scandal — the press got wind that senior administration officials were facilitating the sale of arms to Iran, despite an embargo.

While Reagan was grilled on whether he’d pardon key figures in the scandal including Oliver North and John Poindexter, he joked that he’d instead pardon a turkey if there weren’t already plans to send it to a petting zoo. Two years later, Reagan’s successor George H.W. Bush started the tradition for real.

1994: A New York legislator gets carved up

In 1994, New York Republicans had won the governorship for the first time since 1974 after ousting liberal giant Mario Cuomo. And when George Pataki assumed the role of governor-elect, one of his first steps was to reward his allies and punish his enemies, even within his own party.

Ralph Marino, a moderate Republican from Long Island who had served as the majority leader of the New York state Senate since 1989, opposed Pataki’s nomination. Pataki, a more conservative upstate Republican, then supported Marino’s ouster by conservative ally Joseph Bruno — which all went down on Thanksgiving Day. Bruno held on to power at the helm of the New York State Senate all the way until 2008, and became an essential ally to Pataki as he served as governor until 2006. Marino, stripped of his committee assignments, resigned in early 1995.

2000: Litigation Day

It was an unfestive holiday season for Al Gore. In 2000, on the heels of an impossibly close presidential race, the vice president spent Thanksgiving day at his home in Washington awaiting a key court decision. The day before, the Miami-Dade County Canvassing Board had stopped its recount of ballots. On the holiday itself, the Florida Supreme Court unanimously denied the Gore campaign’s request to order Miami-Dade to resume the hand counting of presidential ballots.

There were several weeks of legal battles still to come, but on Dec. 13, Gore offered his concession in a gracious speech televised from his ceremonial office.

“I accept the finality of the outcome, which will be ratified next Monday in the Electoral College” he said. “And tonight, for the sake of our unity as a people and the strength of our democracy, I offer my concession.”

2008: Alaska Governor Sarah Palin’s pardon problem

The former GOP governor and vice presidential nominee’s time in the national spotlight was brief but eventful, marked by highs, lows and also by one of the weirdest and most awkward scenes in the annals of politicking.

Weeks after her presidential ticket with John McCain had been defeated, Palin appeared at an Alaska turkey farm for a ceremonial Thanksgiving pardoning. But the photo-op went off the rails when a farm employee nonchalantly slaughtered birds behind the then-governor as she spoke to the media — all within the camera frame.

2019: Donald Trump wants Thanksgiving to stay Thanksgiving

In 2019, conservatives declared attempts to make the holiday season more inclusive as an attack on Christmas and the then-president fully supported their cause. But at a Florida rally that year, he extended that support to Thanksgiving: Trump ranted about people who “want to change the name Thanksgiving,” despite no actual known public effort to change the holiday’s name.

“People have different ideas why it shouldn’t be called Thanksgiving,” Trump said at the rally. “But everybody in this room, I know, loves the name Thanksgiving. And we’re not changing.”

The remarks quickly gained traction online — phrases like #WhatLiberalsCallThanksgiving and #WarOnThanksgiving trending on Twitter, with some posts in support and many dripping in irony.

Welcome to POLITICO Nightly. Reach out with news, tips and ideas at nightly@politico.com . Or contact tonight’s authors at mmccarthy@politico.com , cmchugh@politico.com and cmahtesian@politico.com or on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @Reporter_Mia , @calder_mchugh and @PoliticoCharlie . Programming note: Nightly will be off for the Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday, Nov. 23 and Friday, Nov. 24. We’ll be back in your inboxes on Monday, Nov. 27.

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WHAT'D I MISS?

— Donor allegedly offered $20M to recruit a Tlaib primary challenger: A Michigan businessman called Democratic Senate candidate Hill Harper to offer $20 million in campaign contributions if he agreed to drop out and instead mount a primary challenge to Rep. Rashida Tlaib, according to a source with direct knowledge of the call. The source added that Harper declined the alleged Oct. 16 offer from donor Linden Nelson — which would have split the campaign money between $10 million in bundled contributions directly to Harper’s campaign and $10 million in independent expenditures. Harper declined to comment on the record about the alleged call from Nelson, a Michigan entrepreneur and past donor to candidates in both parties, but he recounted the call in the same terms as the source in a post on X after this story’s publication.

— U.S. and Canada investigating bridge explosion at Niagara Falls border crossing: U.S. and Canadian law enforcement are investigating a vehicle explosion that occurred today at a bridge connecting the U.S. and Canada , and are tightening border security along the U.S. northern border. Photos and video taken by bystanders and posted on social media showed thick smoke coming from the Rainbow Bridge, which connects the U.S. and Canada at Niagara Falls. They also showed flames on the pavement and a security booth that had been singed by flames. Videos showed that the fire was in a U.S. Customs and Border Protection area just east of the main vehicle checkpoint.

— Progressives double down on calls for cease-fire despite Israel-Hamas hostage deal: Progressives aren’t backing down from their push for a longer cease-fire in Gaza , despite a hostage deal between Israel and Hamas that will pause the fight for four to five days. Now progressives, who remain critical of the U.S. stance in the war, have to navigate pushing Biden their way immediately after he brokered the greatest diplomatic breakthrough of the early 50-day conflict. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), one of Biden’s most strident critics in favor of a cease-fire, was not satisfied with the pause in fighting and pointed to the toll of Palestinians killed or displaced in Gaza. She was among two-dozen lawmakers who, in a letter last week, urged Biden to establish a cease-fire.

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NIGHTLY ROAD TO 2024

VIVEK IN WINTER — While many people were heading home for the Thanksgiving holiday, the presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy was making a new, if temporary, one in Iowa, reports the New York Times.

He has rented an apartment in Des Moines, the state’s capitol, and plans to participate in the city’s annual Turkey Trot, a Thanksgiving morning run. In the five days before the holiday, Mr. Ramaswamy, 38, hosted over two dozen events, many offering free breakfast, lunch or dinner, eager to answer voter questions. At recent stops, Mr. Ramaswamy, a political newcomer and millionaire entrepreneur, has made a bold proclamation about his 2024 bid: “If I win Iowa, I’m your next president.”

But his odds on either front appear to be growing more remote . He’s campaigning and spending like there’s no tomorrow, buying meals and filling Pizza Ranches with crowds willing to hear him out — but not necessarily winning them over. Stagnation has set in after a fleeting summer spike in popularity, with national polls consistently showing him bogged in the middling single digits. Aggressive debate tactics appear to have hurt him, with his disapproval numbers ticking up after each performance, though he started with little name recognition.

COLD WAR — Joe Biden and Eric Adams, once a perfect political match, haven’t spoken in nearly a year — and nobody expects that to change anytime soon, writes POLITICO.

The icy relationship — emerging amid Adams’ criticism of the president’s handling of the migrant crisis — has evolved into a deep freeze with the New York mayor now embroiled in a federal investigation over whether his campaign colluded with foreign interests.

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AROUND THE WORLD

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán at the Chancellery in Berlin ahead of a meeting with EU leaders on Nov. 13, 2023. | Tobias Schwarz/AFP via Getty Images

FUNDING FEARS — Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is threatening to block all European Union aid for Ukraine , as well as the country’s future accession to the bloc, unless EU leaders agree to review their entire strategy of support for Kyiv, according to a letter seen by POLITICO.

In the letter, addressed to European Council chief Charles Michel, the Hungarian leader says that no decision on funding for Ukraine, the opening of accession talks to the EU, or further sanctions against Russia can be taken until this “strategic discussion” happens when leaders gather in Brussels in mid-December.

“The European Council should take stock of the implementation and effectiveness of our current policies towards Ukraine including various assistance programs,” Orban writes in the letter, which is undated but bears the stamp of his office.

He also asks why Europe should continue to support Ukraine at a time when the United States, which has provided the bulk of military aid for Kyiv, may not be able to continue funding due to partisan deadlock over future support.

“The European Council must have a frank and open discussion on the feasibility of the EU’s strategic objectives in Ukraine,” the letter states.

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NIGHTLY NUMBER

1,040

The number of documented antisemitic incidents in France in the month after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel. Lawmakers in countries around the world have released a joint statement today condemning what they call an “alarming rise” in both antisemitic and anti-Muslim bigotry and violence around the world.

RADAR SWEEP

PARDON THE CONDITIONS — The two turkeys pardoned at the White House earlier this week were selected from a sprawling sea of birds that were living in brutal conditions in Owatonna, Minnesota. They were owned by Jennie-O, America’s second-largest turkey producer — and the company has quite a lot of problems keeping its birds living in safe conditions as they await slaughter. Among other issues, many of the live turkeys on Jennie-O farms were pecking at dead birds, and others showed visible wounds, all signs of cannibalism that has of late plagued the turkey raising industry. A former U.S. attorney called the conditions a violation of Minnesota’s animal cruelty law (being one of the few states in the nation that doesn’t exempt agricultural businesses from animal cruelty regulations). Kenny Torella investigates for Vox.

PARTING IMAGE

On this date in 1963: President John F. Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas. He's seen in this photo riding in his motorcade approximately one minute before he was shot with Jacqueline Kennedy, Nellie Connally and her husband, Gov. John Connally of Texas. | Jim Altgens/AP

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