WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump on Tuesday offered reprieve to a turkey as part of an annual Thanksgiving tradition.The National Turkey Federation presented the two birds, named Corn and Cob in honor of their home state of Iowa.
Corn was declared the national Thanksgiving turkey, though both will retire to a new home on the campus of Iowa State University.The practice of sending a turkey to a farm became the norm under President Ronald Reagan.
But George H.W. Bush established the annual turkey pardon tradition in 1989 by sparing a 50-pound bird as animal rights activists picketed nearby.This year’s lighthearted event took place in the shadow of the 2020 election, which Trump has refused to concede.