Trump, at Florida rally, suggests he's fighting a new 'War on Thanksgiving'
He gave no specifics on who he claims wants to change the holiday's name.
President Donald Trump told supporters at a rally in Sunrise, Florida, Tuesday night that "some people" want to change the name of Thanksgiving -- suggesting he wants to fight a new version of what he and others have called the "War on Christmas."
"As we gather for Thanksgiving, you know, some people want to change the name 'Thanksgiving.' They don’t want to use the term 'Thanksgiving,'" Trump said. "But everybody in this room, I know, loves the name 'Thanksgiving' and we're not changing it."
He gave no specifics on what he was referring to, but his remarks drew loud applause from his supporters.
"That was true also with Christmas," Trump continued. "But now everybody’s using Christmas again. Remember, I said that?"
Trump's remarks drew parallels to his ongoing criticism of the phrase "Happy Holidays." During his first presidential campaign, Trump pledged the White House would return to saying "Merry Christmas," and since taking office, he has declared victory in the so-called "War on Christmas."
"When I first started campaigning, people were not allowed, or -- in some cases -- foolishly ashamed, to be using on stores, 'Merry Christmas, Happy Christmas'. They would say 'Happy Holidays," Trump said at a National Day of Prayer service at the White House in May. "Take a look at your stores nowadays. It's all 'Merry Christmas, again, Merry Christmas, again."
Now Trump appears to be taking the fight to the Thanksgiving holiday as well.
"Now, we’re going to have do little work on Thanksgiving," Trump added Tuesday night. "People have different ideas why it shouldn't be called Thanksgiving."
Although he didn't elaborate on those "different ideas," several Fox News programs have highlighted what they've called the "war on Thanksgiving" in programming over the past month.
According to Media Matters, a Huffington Post article from Nov. 5 on the environmental impact of a typical Thanksgiving dinner may have served as a trigger to those who feel the centuries-old holiday is in danger.
"Liberals are coming for your Thanksgiving turkey!" said Fox News' co-host Greg Gutfeld in front of a large "War on Thanksgiving" graphic, just one day after the article was published.
Two days later, "Fox and Friends "co-host Ainsley Earhardt said: "There's an article on the Huffington Post, telling America to cancel Thanksgiving because of the carbon footprint, telling you not to travel to see your family, don't eat meat, eat veggies."
Trump supporters Lynnette Hardaway and Rochelle Richardson, who go by the names Diamond & Silk, echoed Earhardt's criticisms on the show.
"Don’t tell us what we can and cannot eat," said Hawdaway. "If you have a problem with climate change, stop driving cars -- ride on your horse to work. You do everything you can to fix the climate, but don’t infringe upon my right to have Thanksgiving with my family."
But after the president's remarks went viral on Tuesday night, nearly 20,000 Twitter users made light of the president's suggestion, tweeting the hashtag: #WhatLiberalsCallThanksgiving.
Wait, what do we want to call Thanksgiving, then?#whatliberalscallthanksgiving https://t.co/Eewyok3nEc
— Holly Figueroa O'Reilly (@AynRandPaulRyan) November 27, 2019
...Thanksgiving.
Can... Can we just NOT?
I just want to eat turkey and watch a parade!
— Proud Disney Shill (@googamp32) November 27, 2019
Others questioned the president's sources.
Trump opens his rally by claiming that there's a war on Thanksgiving. "People have different ideas why it shouldn’t be called Thanksgiving," he says. Um, do they?
— Felicia Sonmez (@feliciasonmez) November 27, 2019
Trump is scheduled to spend Thanksgiving at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida.
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