Biden says pardoned turkeys will get ‘boosted,’ not ‘basted’
By ALEXANDRA JAFFE
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has pardoned two turkeys at the White House, an annual holiday tradition. In remarks full of jokes, Biden said the turkeys, named Peanut Butter and Jelly, were selected based on their “temperament, appearance and, I suspect, vaccination status.” He joked that “instead of getting basted, these two turkeys are getting boosted today.” The turkeys will spend the rest of their days at Purdue University’s Animal Science Research and Education Center. Presidents have pardoned turkeys since Abraham Lincoln, but President George H. W. Bush made the pardon the American tradition it is today by sparing a 50-pound bird in 1989.