WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden paid a surprise Christmas Eve visit on Friday to a children’s hospital in Washington, where he offered holiday greetings to patients and their families and showed off a photo of the new first puppy, Commander.
Biden accompanied first lady Jill Biden to Children’s National Hospital in Washington. The hospital visit is an annual holiday tradition for first ladies, but Biden’s visit marked the first by a sitting president.
A dozen children seated at tables were making luminary lanterns when the Bidens were escorted into the room. A boy named Beau held up his lantern for the president. Biden remarked that he had a son named Beau and now has a grandson by the same name.
“You’re bringing us some joy,” Biden told the children.
“My grandson loves laser tag,” he said to one boy.
Biden showed another boy a cellphone photo of Commander, a 3-month-old purebred German shepherd, and suggested he might bring the first pooch to the hospital in the summer.
The first lady noted that the first pet ate her slipper earlier Friday morning.
After visiting with the children, the Bidens sat in front of a Christmas tree, where the first lady read “Frozen Olaf’s Night Before Christmas.” Biden joked that he reads the book at night before bed, along with his briefing books.
Later, the Bidens stopped in Washington’s Dupont Circle neighborhood to check out a Christmas tree dedicated to Jill Biden and other educators.
Biden placed the official White House Christmas ornament on the 17-foot tree, which sits on a street corner outside the Italian restaurant Floriana and has been decorated for the past few years with a theme that honors well-known figures in the community.
Last year’s tree paid tribute to Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, who stopped by for a visit. Two years earlier, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi came by to check out the tree, which had a photo cutout of her at the top instead of a star.
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“Keep the faith,” Biden said when asked what message he has for Americans.
Upon returning to the White House, the Bidens spoke with several children who called into the federal government's official "Santa Tracker," which is run by the North American Aerospace Defense Command.
The Bidens are spending their first Christmas as president and first lady at the White House. They also will eschew a family tradition of traveling to the U.S. Virgin Islands for the New Year’s holiday, a trip they have made with family nearly every year since 2008.
Biden’s brother James owns property on Water Island, and Biden often has spent the week there or on St. Croix. Instead, the Biden’s will spend a few days between Christmas and New Year’s in Delaware.
Michael Collins covers the White House. Follow him on Twitter @mcollinsNEWS.
Contributing: The Associated Press
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