Trump saves Biden's turkeys: Pardons 'Peach' and 'Blossom' after declaring 2024 pardons 'invalid' for using autopen

In a ceremony full of laughter and political touches in the White House Rose Garden, President Donald Trump kept alive the annual Thanksgiving tradition of pardoning two giant turkeys, "Gobble" and "Waddle," this year.

But it didn't stop there: with a humorous nod to his predecessor, Joe Biden, Trump announced that the 2024 turkey pardons, "Peach" and "Blossom," were "totally invalid" due to the use of an autopen-a mechanical device for signing documents-and proceeded to formally "rescue" them, saving them from a fatal fate.

The tradition of turkeys

The tradition of the presidential turkey pardon dates back decades, informally to the Harry Truman era in 1947, though it was formalized in the 1980s. This year, the event marked Trump's fifth pardon as president, and drew a crowd of journalists, officials, and families in a festive atmosphere, punctuated only by the characteristic gobble of feathered protagonists.

Trump, true to form, did not pass up the opportunity to inject politics into the celebration, beginning his speech with a fictional "very rigorous investigation" involving Attorney General Pam Bondi, the Department of Justice (DOJ), the FBI, the CIA and the White House Counsel's Office.

"Because you remember last year, after a thorough and very rigorous investigation by [Attorney General] Pam Bondi and all of the people at Department of Justice, the FBI, the CIA, and the White House Counsel's Office…I have determined that last year's turkey pardons are totally invalid," Trump said, according to Fox News. "Null and void," he emphasized, referring to the autopen Biden used in 2024.

"The turkeys known as Peach and Blossom last year have been located, and they were on their way to be processed, in other words, to be killed. But I've stopped that journey, and I am officially pardoning them. And they will not be served for Thanksgiving dinner. We saved them in the nick of time."

The crowd erupted in laughter at the exaggeration, which played on Trump's recurring criticism of Biden's use of the autopen.

The Republican also extended the joke to other Biden-era pardons, insinuating that most were invalid "except Hunter's," a reference to the former president's son.

Trump noted that these birds are the largest in the tradition's history, weighing more than 50 pounds each. "Despite their size, Secretary Kennedy has formally certified that these are the first ever MAHA turkeys," Trump joked, aligning the event with his public health agenda.

For her part, the first lady, Melania Trump, added to the event's charm by revealing that the names "Gobble" and "Waddle" were chosen via a poll on X. For his part, the president confessed that he thought about calling them "Chuck" and "Nancy" (a jibe at Democratic leaders Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi).

"I was going to call them Chuck and Nancy, but then I realized I wouldn't pardon them. I would never pardon those two people," Trump said, prompting more laughter.

The future of the turkeys

After the announcement, the turkeys were symbolically "released" and headed to North Carolina State University, where they will act as "turkey ambassadors" for the poultry industry, according to a spokeswoman for the National Turkey Federation.