President Donald Trump on Tuesday evening, at a Florida rally, vowed not to change the name of Thanksgiving.
“As we gather together for Thanksgiving, you know, some people want to change the name Thanksgiving,” Trump told a crowd. “They dont want to use the term Thanksgiving. And that was true also with Christmas. But now everybodys using Christmas again. Remember this?”
“But now were going to have to do a little work on Thanksgiving,” Trump continued at the Florida rally. “People have different ideas. Why it shouldnt be called Thanksgiving. But everybody in this room, I know, loves the name Thanksgiving. And were not changing.”
Trump said that Americans have a lot to be thankful for.
“The economy is booming. Wages are rising. Crime is falling. Poverty is plummeting. Confidence is soaring. And America is stronger than ever before,” the president said.
He also touted his administrations work to create more jobs and provide more support to American workers.
“For years and years and years, I was like you. I was a civilian,” Trump said of his prior Thanksgiving holiday celebrations.
He added: “I loved my life. My life was so much simpler. It was so nice and soft and easy. You build a building and you have fun. But Id always see you turn on the news.”
Trump recently switched his residency from New York to Florida.
While campaigning during the 2016 election, Trump said that he would ensure that people would be able to “say Merry Christmas again” in stores and public places rather than “Happy Holidays,” according to The Hill.
Since the early 1970s, Native Americans in New England have held a protest called the National Day of Mourning on the same day as Thanksgiving.
Earlier in the day, Trump pardoned a turkey a the White House in front of a crowd.
“I hereby grant you a full and complete pardon,” Trump said to the bird, named Butter.
