(L-R) First lady Jill Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, First Lady Joe Biden, and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff greet guests on the South Lawn of the White House on April 1, 2024, in Washington, D.C.
On one of the rare days of the year when the executive branch is transformed into a playground for kids, children flocked to the South Lawn for the White House Easter Egg Roll this year, even in spite of the sporadic rain.
This year, the White House announced that it was expecting 40,000 attendees, a record for the event, which dates back to 1878.
Since the ceremony was postponed in 2021 due to the COVID-19 epidemic, President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden have hosted it three times this year. The White House is showcasing science projects, a reading nook, a solar eclipse learning station, and, of course, an Easter Bunny visit in honor of this year’s theme, “EGGucation” Roll.
“Being a teacher, I appreciate any opportunity we have to transform the White House into a classroom,” the first lady The event was praised by President Biden on NBC’s Today show early on Monday. Biden declared, “This is the people’s house.” I usually get a positive feeling when I observe regular Americans strolling around and taking in their surroundings. since they are its owners.”
Children were hunting and rolling eggs when the president and first lady joined them. According to the American Egg Board, about 64,000 eggs were provided by farmers in Pennsylvania and North Carolina to be used for the event’s hunting, decorating, rolling, and munching. almost the course of eight days, Braswell Family Farms in North Carolina boiled and dyed almost 6,000 eggs every day. They also collaborated with the White House to create unique hues of orange, purple, pink, and “Biden blue.”
“Easter reminds us of the power of hope and renewal, sacrifice and resurrection, but mainly love and grace towards one another,” Biden stated during the event on Monday. “It’s a time to pray for one another, to cherish the blessings and the possibilities that we have as Americans.”
But there was debate surrounding the occasion. The press secretary for former President Donald Trump’s campaign, Karoline Leavitt, stated that Biden ought to issue an apology for commemorating Transgender Day of Visibility, which falls on Easter Sunday this year and is always observed on March 31.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, among other Republicans, expressed support for the Trump campaign and chastised the White House for excluding religious themes from being incorporated into designs for the yearly egg decorating competition for kids. In a statement on X, Johnson claimed that Biden “betrayed the central tenet of Easter β which is the resurrection of Jesus Christ”.
The American Egg Board, a supporter of the yearly event, and the White House both said that the restriction prohibiting religious symbols was in place for a long time and existed before the Biden administration. During Trump’s presidency, it was in force.
“The American Egg Board has been a supporter of the White House Easter Egg Roll for over 45 years and the guideline language referenced in recent news reports has consistently applied to the board since its founding, across administrations,” Emily Metz, president and CEO of the American Egg Board, said.
The Easter Bunny joins White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre for the daily news briefing at the White House.
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