White House Offers Up Thanksgiving ‘Talking Points’ to Get Through Thursday’s Dinner
WASHINGTON — Elon Musk may have invited former President Donald Trump back to Twitter, but it’s the Biden administration that is taking full advantage of the social media platform for some pre-holiday messaging.
In a Tweet posted shortly after 9 a.m. Wednesday, White House Chief of Staff Ronald Klain shared an image entitled “President Biden’s accomplishments for chatting with your uncle at Thanksgiving.”
Among other things, the talking points credit the president with “tackling inflation and lowering costs,” including knocking $1.35 per gallon off the price of gasoline since June, unsnarling supply chains, and saving Americans with hearing loss up to $3,000 on hearing aids.
It also touts the administration’s success in capping annual out-of-pocket prescription drug costs at $2,000 for seniors on Medicare and capping insulin copays at $35 per prescription for seniors on Medicare.
And it goes on to describe instances in which the White House worked with Republicans to “rebuild” the nation’s infrastructure and pass the CHIPs and Science Act to bring cutting-edge manufacturing back to the U.S.
“Despite global challenges, we’re making progress,” the talking points continue, “10 million jobs created, unemployment at near record lows, more small businesses launching than ever before, no new taxes on people making less than $400,000.”
If all this doesn’t convince one’s unnamed “uncle,” Klain lays in some political shots right at the end, describing Republicans in Congress as extremists who have proposed a national ban on abortion, plan to cut Medicare and Social Security, and are plotting to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act.
Taking a more low-key approach to pre-holiday messaging, White House Spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre, simply noted that “Thanksgiving should be about passing the gravy — not passing along COVID or the flu.
“Get your updated COVID and flu shots today!” she tweeted.
As for Trump, his official account, @realDonaldTrump, remains a strange time capsule.
The most recent tweet from the former President, from 10:44 a.m. on Jan 8, 2021, says simply, “To all of those who have asked, I will not be going to the Inauguration on January 20th.”
Instead, Trump saved his humbuggery for his own Truth Social social media platform, where he excoriated the U.S. Supreme Court Wednesday morning.
On Tuesday, in an apparently unanimous decision, the justices rejected his emergency appeal to shield his tax returns from the Democratically-controlled House Ways and Means Committee.
“Why would anybody be surprised that the Supreme Court has ruled against me, they always do!” Trump wrote Wednesday morning on Truth Social.
“It is unprecedented to be handing over Tax Returns, & it creates a terrible precedent for future Presidents. Has Joe Biden paid taxes on all of the money he made illegally from Hunter & beyond,” he continued.
“The Supreme Court has lost its honor, prestige, and standing, & has become nothing more than a political body, with our Country paying the price,” Trump added. “They refused to even look at the Election Hoax of 2020. Shame on them!”
Dan can be reached at [email protected] and at https://twitter.com/DanMcCue
