[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 42, Number 47 (Monday, November 27, 2006)]
[Pages 2087-2088]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at the Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation Ceremony

November 22, 2006

    Good morning. Thanks for coming. Welcome to the Rose Garden. I 
appreciate being up here with Mike Briggs and Alice Johnson of the 
National Turkey Federation, and I thank you for bringing along our 
feathery guest. [Laughter] We're glad you're here. Mike, thanks for 
bringing your family as well.
    The name of the National Thanksgiving Turkey has been chosen by 
online voting at the White House web site. By the decision of the 
voters, this turkey is going to be called Flyer. And there's always a 
backup bird, just in case the guest of honor can't perform his duties, 
and the backup bird's name is Fryer. [Laughter] Probably better to be 
called Flyer than Fryer.
    These birds were hatched on a farm in Missouri and raised there by 
Matthew Nutt and his mom and dad, Carol [Donna] * and Lynn, and we're 
glad you all are here. Thanks for coming. They did a fine job of raising 
these birds.
    * White House correction.
    I also welcome the Girl Scouts who've joined us. Thanks for coming--
yes, I'm glad you're here. These are troops from Virginia and Maryland 
and Washington, DC. And we thank you for being in scouting, and we thank 
your scout masters and your parents for setting such a good example for 
you.
    We're here in the Rose Garden. This is a place where Barney likes to 
hang out. Barney is my dog. And he likes to chase a soccer ball here. He 
came out a little early, as did Flyer, and instead of chasing the soccer 
ball, he chased the bird. [Laughter] And it kind of made the turkey 
nervous. See, the turkey was already nervous to begin with. Nobody has 
told him yet about the pardon I'm about to give him. [Laughter]
    Tomorrow is our day of thanksgiving. It's a national observance 
first proclaimed by George Washington. In our journey across the 
centuries from a few tiny settlements to a prosperous and powerful 
nation, Americans have always been a grateful people, and we are this 
year as well. We're grateful for our beautiful land. We're grateful for 
a harvest big enough to feed us all, plus much of the world. We're 
grateful for our freedom. We're grateful for our families, and we're 
grateful for life itself.
    So on Thanksgiving Day, we gather with loved ones and we lift our 
hearts toward heaven in humility and gratitude. As we count our 
blessings, Americans also share our blessings. We're a generous country. 
We're filled with caring citizens who reach out to others, people who've 
heard the universal call to love a neighbor as we want to be loved 
ourself. On Thanksgiving and every day of the year, Americans live out 
of a spirit of compassion and care, and I thank you for that. It's the 
spirit that moves men and women to be mentors to the young, to be scout 
leaders, to be helpers of the elderly, to be comforters of the lonely 
and those who are left out.
    We love our country, and the greatest example of that devotion is 
the citizen who steps forward to defend our Nation from harm. The 
members of our military have set aside their own comfort and convenience 
and safety to protect the rest of us. Their courage keeps us free. Their 
sacrifice makes us grateful, and their character makes us proud. 
Especially during the holidays, our whole Nation keeps them and their 
families in our thoughts and prayers.
    And now to the ceremonial task of the day. Why don't we have a look 
at Flyer? There

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you go. I think Flyer heard Barney barking over there. [Laughter] It's a 
fine looking bird, isn't it? Flyer is probably wondering where he's 
going to wind up tomorrow. He's probably thinking he's going to end up 
on somebody's table. Well, I'm happy to report that he and Fryer both 
have many tomorrows ahead of them. This morning I am grateful--I am 
granting a full Presidential pardon so they can live out their lives as 
safe as can be.
    In fact, it gets even better. Later today Flyer and Fryer will be on 
a plane to Disneyland--[laughter]--where they're going to achieve 
further celebrity as the honorary grand marshal of the Thanksgiving Day 
Parade.
    Thank you all for coming. God bless, and happy Thanksgiving.

Note: The President spoke at 10:22 a.m. in the Rose Garden at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Mike Briggs, chairman, and Alice 
L. Johnson, president, National Turkey Federation.