President Trump hosted Thanksgiving dinner with his family at his Mar-A-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida on Thursday.
Business was never far from the holiday celebrations as Trump spoke with reporters and members of the military about the ongoing border crisis Thursday morning.
Trump hosts Thanksgiving dinner
The president could be seen Thursday enjoying a traditional Thanksgiving meal with his family at the private resort. The president was joined at the table by his wife Melania, 12-year-old son Barron, daughter Ivanka and her family, daughter Tiffany, son Eric and Eric’s wife Lara. Donald Trump Jr. was absent.
It wasn’t clear what the president had to eat, but the dinner menu included a carving station with turkey with all the trimmings, beef tenderloin, lamb and salmon. Entrees were Chilean sea bass, red snapper, and braised short ribs, along with sides of whipped potatoes, sweet potatoes, vegetables and traditional stuffing.
There was also a chilled seafood display with crab, oysters, jumbo shrimp and clams, along with a full salad bar — however, the White House confirmed that no romaine lettuce was served. The CDC issued a warning earlier in the week to avoid romaine due to an E.coli outbreak.
Reporters who appeared briefly in the dining room were greeted with an opera singer performing “Music of the Night” from Phantom of the Opera.
The dinner came after Trump played a “quick round” of golf the day before with Jack Nicklaus, his son Gary and grandson G.T. The president arrived at Mar-A-Lago Tuesday night to enjoy the holiday at the “Winter White House” after pardoning two turkeys earlier in the day, a White House Thanksgiving tradition.
Trump joked that the turkeys would face subpoenas from the Democrats and that one of the birds, who lost an online vote to be pardoned but was spared anyway, refused to concede and demanded a re-count.
Business and pleasure
While Trump enjoyed time on the golf course and with his family, politics continued to loom over the holiday. As the Trumps ate turkey and stuffing, thousands of migrants in the “caravan” were making landfall at the border with California.
Trump held a conference call with members of all five branches of the military Thursday morning to express “profound gratitude” for their service and discuss the border, where thousands of troops on a mission to stop the caravan celebrated Thanksgiving away from home. “Your courage truly inspires us,” Trump said.
After the call ended, Trump talked to reporters and warned of a total border shutdown if the southern side lost “control.” “If we find that it gets to a level where we are going to lose control or where people are going to start getting hurt, we will close entry into the country for a period of time until we can get it under control. The whole border.”
When asked what he was thankful for, Trump said his family and the great progress he has made as president. “For having a great family and for having a tremendous difference in this country. I’ve made a tremendous difference in the country.”
Trump also met with members of the Coast Guard and thanked them for their service before returning to Mar-A-Lago for dinner.
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