US President Joe Biden, First Lady serve Thanksgiving dinner to US military

US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden served the Thanksgiving meals to US troops, Marines, and sailors aboard Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point in North Carolina on the occasion of Friendsgiving. As many as 400 service members and their families joined the US President for dinner and enjoyed the meal that included turkey and ham, sides such as mashed potatoes which were prepared by celebrity chef Robert Irvine. 

"The American people have no idea the sacrifices you're making," president Joe Biden told the troops, as he joined them for the dinner. "One percent of you represents 99% of the public; you're all volunteers, you all just show up, and you're always there," he added in his speech. 

Dinner arranged in collaboration with White House's Joining Forces Initiative

The dinner was prepared in collaboration with the White House's Joining Forces Initiative, a program that supports military members and their families. Most of the Marines who attended were the juniors serving under the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force and made the trip from Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, Maj. Joshua Schubert told NPR when reached out for a comment. 

"We are a military family. My dad was Navy; our son was Army. So, we actually know what it's like to be away from your family on Thanksgiving," the first lady of the US meanwhile said. "So even though you're away from your families at home and your home states, we know that you're here with your family here, because the military is family," she added. 

President Joe Biden earlier yesterday pardoned a pair of Thanksgiving turkeys named after his favourite flavour of ice cream, Chocolate, and Chip, continuing a 75-year tradition at the South Lawn of the White House. He cracked jokes about his political party’s better-than-expected performance in this month’s midterm elections. “The votes are in, they’ve been counted and verified,” Biden said as he spared the life of Chocolate and Chip. 

“There’s no ballot stuffing. There’s no foul play. The only red wave this season’s gonna be if German shepherd Commander knocks over the cranberry sauce on our table," Biden  joked as he referred to his pet dog Commander.

The two turkeys, weighing 50 pounds, were checked into a room at the Willard hotel before the US president visited them. Biden joked, “we could have named them Chips and Science,” mentioning the $280 billion CHIPS and Science Act that he approved into law last year. 

Biden moved to have the dinner with US military as per the long-standing history when American presidents visited troops around Thanksgiving. Last year, Biden visited Fort Bragg, N.C., for an early Thanksgiving meal with soldiers. Former US President Donald Trump travelled to the American troops overseas in Afghanistan in 2019, while in 2020 he held a video conference with the military soldiers stationed on foreign soil due to the pandemic.