Biden Bits: “Once More”…

December 2, 2024 12:00 pm EST Tiff Biden Tweets (Open Thread) Comments Off on Biden Bits: “Once More”…
Biden Tweets Christmas Logo. Image by Lenny Ghoul.

It’s Monday…

We welcome in…

via GIPHY

President Biden’s public schedule for 12/02/2024:

4:30 AM
Amílcar Cabral International Airport, Espargos, Cape Verde Out-of-Town Pool
The President arrives in Sal, Cabo Verde
5:00 AM
Amílcar Cabral International Airport, Espargos, Cape Verde Closed Press
The President greets with Prime Minister Ulisses Correia e Silva of Cabo Verde
6:00 AM
Amílcar Cabral International Airport, Espargos, Cape Verde Out-of-Town Pool
The President departs Sal, Cabo Verde
9:15 AM
Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby will gaggle aboard Air Force One en route to Luanda, Angola
12:00 PM
Quatro de Fevereiro Luanda International Airport, Luanda, Angola Open Press
The President arrives to Luanda, Angola
12:15 PM
Quatro de Fevereiro Luanda International Airport, Luanda, Angola 
The President greets with staff and families of the U.S. Embassy Luanda

Reminder: The President has left the US; all times in his public schedule are in D.C., time.

Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and John Kirby Gaggle Aboard Air Force One (replay):


Small Business Saturday Tweet

From Saturday…

From the White House…

11/29/2024:

FACT SHEET: Ahead of Small Business Saturday, the Biden-⁠Harris Administration Takes New Actions to Increase Federal Support for Small Businesses

The Biden-Harris Administration is increasing small business lending limits and helping small businesses compete for federal contracting opportunities

Small businesses are the engines of our economy and the heart and soul of our communities. Today, the White House announced new actions by the Small Business Administration (SBA) and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to increase access to federal lending and contracting opportunities for small businesses. SBA is announcing it is making it easier for traditionally underserved small businesses to access capital from mission-oriented lenders by increasing the cap on their SBA 7(a) loans from $350,000 to $500,000. OMB is releasing procurement guidance on both upcoming contracts and subcontracting opportunities to better enable federal agencies to support small business trying to compete for the over $700 billion in federal contracts. And federal agencies are leveraging small disadvantaged businesses at record rates to improve resilience in federal research and development (R&D) supply chains.

President Biden and Vice President Harris invested a record $56 billion in SBA-backed capital in small businesses last year—and have overseen a small business boom. American entrepreneurs have filed over 20 million new business applications, the most in any single Presidential term in history. And these applications are leading historic business creation, with new establishment growth higher under President Biden than at any point in the last quarter-century. Entrepreneurs are thriving across communities, with business ownership doubling among Black families, hitting a 30-year high for Hispanic families, exceeding a 30-year high for Asian Americans, and surpassing pre-pandemic levels for women business owners. The Biden-Harris agenda continues to make sure that small businesses in every corner of the country—rural, suburban, urban, and everywhere in between—have the resources they need to grow and thrive.

In advance of Small Business Saturday, the Biden-Harris Administration is doubling down on investments in entrepreneurs by taking the following actions:

Expanding caps on critical lending programs. Today, the SBA is announcing an increase of the maximum loan amount backed by their Community Advantage Small Business Lending Companies (CA SBLCs) from $350,000 to $500,000 for active lenders in good standing. These mission-based non-depository lenders—often Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs)—focus on providing access to capital to underserved businesses and underinvested businesses, ensuring that women, people of color, veterans, rural, and low- and moderate-income communities have access to SBA-backed capital. This step builds on prior action by the Biden-Harris Administration to support small businesses through CA SBLCs, including making the program permanent following a successful pilot launched by the Obama-Biden Administration.

FACT SHEET: Ahead of Small Business Saturday, the Biden-⁠Harris Administration Takes New Actions to Increase Federal Support for Small Businesses. 11/29/2024.
  • Improving forecasting of upcoming federal contracting opportunities. OMB is issuing guidance to federal procurement officials to strengthen government-wide procurement forecasts. Agencies have long been required to prepare annual forecasts of upcoming federal contract opportunities for businesses, but variance in the quality and timeliness has made it difficult for small businesses to prepare their proposals and more effectively compete against larger businesses. Today’s memo will help align timelines and expectations, better enabling small business to understand when new opportunities will become available and plan ahead to compete for federal awards.
  • Increasing access to federal subcontracting opportunities. In 2023, small businesses received a record $86 billion in subcontract awards from the federal government. Building on this success, OMB is issuing guidance to federal agencies on ways to continue to expand subcontracting opportunities for small businesses, the primary gateway for them to compete as prime contractors. This also improves the resilience of supply chains for critical government needs by increasing competition and expanding the pool of businesses engaged in federal contracts. This guidance describes promising policies and strategies adopted by forward-thinking agencies, and encourages federal procurement officials to recognize prime contractors who meet or exceed their subcontracting plan goals and work to strengthen their small business supply chains.
  • Leveraging Small Disadvantaged Businesses (SDBs) to meet research and development (R&D) Needs. Federal R&D investments are integral to maintaining American leadership in emerging science and technology. The Biden-Harris Administration has made significant progress in leveraging the talents of SDBs for federal R&D contracts, with two-year average annual spending at $2.5 billion in Fiscal Years 2022 and 2023—an all-time high and nearly $450 million a year more than in 2020. Following OMB’s call for agencies to strategically build out resilience within specific supply chains, the White House, SBA, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) released an internal set of best practices to help agencies reach even greater heights in the R&D sector, including actions to strengthen planning, outreach, and use of the resources available through the 8(a) Program.

Both of OMB’s actions build on significant work by the Biden-Harris Administration to help small and underserved businesses access federal contract opportunities, including awarding a record $178.6 billion in federal contracting opportunities to small businesses (28.4% of eligible federal dollars) and a record $76.2 billion to small disadvantaged businesses (12.1% of eligible federal dollars).

FACT SHEET: Ahead of Small Business Saturday, the Biden-⁠Harris Administration Takes New Actions to Increase Federal Support for Small Businesses. 11/29/2024.

World AIDS Day Tweets

From Sunday…

The YouTube is 23 minutes and 24 seconds long; remarks haven’t been posted yet.

From the White House…

11/29/2024:

FACT SHEET: The Biden-⁠Harris Administration’s Efforts to End HIV/AIDS At Home and Abroad

Ahead of World AIDS Day, we remember those who have died from AIDS-related illnesses—honoring their courage and contributions as essential to the progress made thus far. We also stand in solidarity with the more than 39 million people with HIV around the world. Four years ago, the Biden-Harris Administration renewed and strengthened the government’s bipartisan commitment to ending the HIV epidemic. Since then, significant progress has been made through a whole-of-society approach, unprecedented investments, and a steadfast commitment to leading with science, advancing equity, and addressing HIV stigma and discrimination.

Domestically, the implementation of the updated National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS) has not only focused on reducing new HIV infections and improving health outcomes for people with HIV but also expanded efforts to address social determinants of health, reform outdated HIV criminalization laws, and strengthen partnerships with communities and organizations nationwide.

Globally, under the Biden-Harris Administration, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) released a five-year strategy with five strategic pillars and three enablers designed to end global HIV/AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.

PEPFAR—the largest commitment by any nation to address a single disease in history—has saved more than 25 million lives and enabled more than 7.8 million babies to be born HIV-free across 55 countries since its inception in 2003.

These actions collectively contribute to bending the trajectory of the epidemic toward its eventual end. The latest HIV incidence estimates are continuing to move in the right direction overall, although disparities continue in the U.S.

FACT SHEET: The Biden-⁠Harris Administration’s Efforts to End HIV/AIDS At Home and Abroad. 11/29/2024.
  • In 2022, HIV incidence among people ages 13 and older decreased 12% compared with 2018 in the U.S., driven by a 30% decrease among young people aged 13-24 years.
  • In 2022, new HIV infections among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) were approximately 16% lower for Black men and 20% lower for White men compared to 2018. There was no decrease in new HIV infections among Hispanic/Latino men, who accounted for 39% of estimated new HIV infections among gay, bisexual, and other MSM in 2022.
  • Data also show significant declines geographically in the U.S., with estimated new HIV infections decreasing 16% in the South in 2022 compared with 2018.
  • Data show that the rate of HIV-related deaths declined 25%, highlighting the effectiveness of early diagnosis and linking people to care and treatment.
  • As of 2022, 36% of people who could benefit from pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) were prescribed this medication, up for 25% in 2020. 

Over the past year the Administration acted to:

Expand Equitable Treatment and Prevention of HIV in the U.S.

  • Increase Access to HIV Prevention. The U.S. government is committed to expanding access to HIV prevention medications, including long-acting injectable PrEP. The White House continues to work with federal agencies, policymakers, and Congress to expand access to PrEP for uninsured and underinsured individuals, including the proposed 10-year $9.8 billion National PrEP Program. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) launched a new PrEP pilot program in five jurisdictions to accelerate PrEP uptake and improve patient access and utilization. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a National Coverage Determination for Medicare Part B coverage of PrEP. This ensures that all Medicare recipients can receive PrEP medication and additional critical services like counseling sessions, HIV testing, and vaccination at no cost. Additionally, the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and the Treasury released FAQs to clarify that long-acting injectable PrEP, as well as related baseline and monitoring services, must be covered without cost sharing.
  • Implementing the Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. (EHE) initiative. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) launched the EHE initiative in 2019 to advance innovative, community-driven solutions that leverage science in HIV prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and response in regions with the greatest need. In jurisdictions receiving EHE funding, HIV incidence decreased 21% among those ages 13 and older in 2022 compared with the 2017 EHE baseline year. Between 2021-2023, more than 61,000 people were prescribed PrEP in the CDC EHE-funded programs. The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)-supported health centers provided PrEP services to 183,000 patients with EHE funding in 2021-2023. The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program supported over 22,000 clients new to care and re-engaged 19,000 clients through EHE, with 79.2% of those new to treatment achieving viral suppression in 2022. With EHE funding, 406 community health centers conducted a cumulative 7.2 million HIV tests, substantially increasing the proportion of their patients aware of their HIV status. Indian Health Service EHE-supported sites performed over 20,000 HIV tests, and the CDC distributed over 600,000 free HIV self-tests. Between 2017 and 2022, the initiative prevented 9,500 new HIV infections in the EHE jurisdictions, saving over $5.1 billion in lifetime HIV medical costs – a figure projected to grow with continued efforts.

Strengthen Global Efforts for HIV Prevention and Treatment

  • Leading the Global Fight to End HIV/AIDS as a Public Health Threat by 2030. Through PEPFAR and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis (TB), and Malaria (Global Fund), the American people have supported the HIV response in more than 100 countries, investing more than $26 billion over the past four years. 
  • Providing Greater Access to HIV Prevention. UNAIDS data show there were 52% fewer new HIV infections in 2023 than in 2010 across PEPFAR-supported countries, compared with a 39% reduction globally, demonstrating the impact of PEPFAR support to HIV prevention interventions. PEPFAR supported HIV testing for 83.8 million people, an increase of 12 million compared to last year. PEPFAR also supported 35.1 million voluntary medical male circumcisions for HIV prevention since 2007, including 2.7 million in FY 2024. PEPFAR is delivering on the growing demand across partner countries for highly effective PrEP for HIV prevention. In the last four years, new annual PrEP initiations supported by PEPFAR have increased by more than 500%, reaching 2.5 million people protected from HIV infection in FY 2024.  PEPFAR is providing long-acting, injectable PrEP in five countries and is actively working on expansion plans for innovations in long–acting, injectable PrEP that can  contribute toward ending HIV/AIDS as a public health threat. 
  • Expanding Access to HIV Treatment. Over the last four years, PEPFAR added more than 2.1 million people with HIV on life-saving antiretroviral treatment. As of July 2024, PEPFAR is currently ensuring HIV treatment for more than 20.6 million people, including 566,000 children, and more than 14.6 million people are now receiving treatment via multi-month dispensing. 
  • Supporting the Global Fund. The United States is the largest single investor in the Global Fund, a critical partner to achieving our goal of ending HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria as public health threats by 2030.  Over the last two decades, investments in the Global Fund have cut the combined death rate from HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria by 61% and have helped save 65 million lives.

Ensure Accessible Healthcare and Support Services

  • PEPFAR Initiatives to Support Equitable HIV Care. PEPFAR launched several major initiatives aimed at addressing health equity for vulnerable populations globally – including adolescent girls and young women, children and key populations.   In FY24, PEPFAR also provided support to 6.6 million orphans and vulnerable children living with or affected by HIV/AIDS and their caregivers. Some PEPFAR initiatives include:
  • The $40 million Safe Births, Healthy Babies initiative to accelerate progress to eliminate mother-to-child HIV transmission in three high burden countries.
  • The $8 million Nursing Leadership Initiative to equip nurses in Botswana, Côte d’Ivoire, Eswatini, Malawi, Nigeria, South Africa, and Zambia with the skills and capacities they need to deliver high-quality HIV services across seven PEPFAR-supported countries.
  • The Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-Free, Mentored and Safe (DREAMS) program    reached 2.3 million adolescent girls and young women across 15 countries with comprehensive HIV prevention services, including nearly 475,000 who started PrEP in the past year.
  • The Key Populations Action Plan to address the HIV service equity gaps among key population groups that face disproportionate risks of HIV infection and challenges in accessing services.
  • Advancing Cervical Cancer Prevention for Women with HIV. Cervical cancer is an AIDS-defining illness, where women with HIV are up to six times more likely to develop persistent precancerous lesions and progress to cervical cancer, often with more aggressive forms and higher mortality. To address this significant health threat, in 2018, PEPFAR, the George W. Bush Institute and UNAIDS established the Go Further Partnership to eliminate cervical cancer among women living with HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa. Go Further partner countries have made tremendous progress and have performed nearly 10 million cervical cancer screens. As of June 2024, PEPFAR reached more than 6.3 million women HIV with cervical cancer prevention services and treated more than 350,000 precancerous lesions.
  • PEPFAR’s Commitment to Health Equity. The first pillar of the PEPFAR Strategy focuses on health equity, including advancing gender equitable programs, engaging youth, ending HIV/AIDS in children, promoting key population leadership, ensuring holistic combination prevention, and dismantling structural barriers.
  • Sustaining Quality-of-Life for People Living with HIV in the U.S. The National HIV/AIDS Strategy includes five quality of life indicators – overall health, mental health, food insecurity, stable housing, and employment. In observance of World AIDS Day, the White House Office of National AIDS Policy will be hosting a Quality-of-Life Symposium for people with HIV, researchers, federal partners, and public health experts to explore how the HIV service community can increase its focus on ensuring overall wellness for people with HIV across the lifespan and address social determinants of health. 
  • Supporting the Aging HIV Community. Agencies across the U.S. government are working to address medical and social support needs of people aging with HIV and long-term HIV survivors. HRSA, CDC, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have all increased their efforts to conduct additional research, highlight best practices and provide tailored care and support services.
  • Ensuring Equitable Access to Care. The NHAS Federal Implementation Plan prioritizes access to PrEP in vulnerable communities, promotes compliance with civil rights laws (including language access services and disability rights), and assists state and local governments in protecting people with HIV from violence, retaliation, and discrimination. Domestic HIV programs, including the EHE initiative continuously strive to create and enhance healthcare systems that provide high quality, affordable, and culturally appropriate prevention, testing, and care for all individuals, especially the priority and key populations identified in the NHAS.

Increase Awareness and End Stigma and Discrimination

  • CDC Updates HIV Testing Guidance to Remove Age Limit. CDC updated its HIV testing guidance, removing the previous upper age limit of 64 for routine HIV screening. Under the new guidance, all patients aged 15 and older are encouraged to get tested for HIV at least once as part of routine healthcare. This change is a significant step toward addressing HIV testing stigma by normalizing HIV screening as a lifelong practice and helps promote earlier diagnosis and treatment across all age groups, ultimately supporting efforts to end the HIV epidemic.
  • Reform of HIV Criminalization Laws. For the first time, the proposed Fiscal Year 2025 budget invests in state and local efforts to promote equity and protect civil rights through a new $10 million Department of Justice grant program to support modernization of outdated state criminal statutes with a discriminatory impact on people with HIV. Outdated HIV criminalization laws do not reflect our current understanding of HIV transmission, discourage HIV testing, and exacerbate the challenges faced by people with HIV. The Department of Justice reached a landmark settlement with Shelby County, Tennessee, ending discriminatory enforcement of a law that imposed higher criminal penalties for prostitution for people with HIV.
  • Adoption of Science Informed Treatment and Messaging. PEPFAR and domestic HIV programs have adopted HIV interventions such as PrEP along with the complementary, life-affirming message of U=U (undetectable =untransmittable) to dismantle stigma and discrimination for people with HIV. U=U means that a person with an undetectable viral load cannot be transmit HIV to other sexual partners.
  • Organ Donation between Patients Living with HIV. An NIH-funded clinical trial confirmed that kidney transplantation is safe between donors and recipients with HIV—a practice currently only permitted in the United States under a research protocol. This research was made possible by the HIV Organ Policy Equity Act (HOPE) implemented in 2015 to legalize transplants between donors and recipients living with HIV. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a final rule that will expand access to kidney and liver transplants for people with HIV by removing clinical research requirements for these transplants.

Prioritize Community-Driven Responses

  • Mobilizing Rising HIV Leaders. In July, the White House Office of National AIDS Policy hosted The White House Rising Leaders Summit: Shaping the Future of HIV Today. The Summit convened young emerging leaders in public health from diverse communities. The event generated actionable ideas to advance the vision and goals of the Administration’s National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS), solidifying the Administration’s commitment to nurturing innovative leadership in the fight against HIV. Globally, PEPFAR launched a $20 million Youth Initiative to elevate youth leadership in the HIV response to reduce new HIV infections and increase awareness of HIV status among adolescents and young people.
  • Hispanic/Latino Community Engagement.  In September, the White House Office of National AIDS Policy hosted a Summit on HIV in Hispanic/Latino Communities called, “¡Adelante!” The Summit occurred at a critical moment when Hispanic/Latino people, representing about 19% of the U.S. population, accounted for nearly 32% of all new HIV diagnoses in 2022, with Hispanic/Latino gay men now representing the highest number of new HIV cases in the country. It brought together federal agencies, cross-sector partners, and individuals with lived experience to amplify diverse voices, generate actionable solutions, and drive collective action. This Summit reinforced the Administration’s commitment to accelerating the nation’s HIV response in Hispanic/Latino communities and ensuring sustained impact through collaboration and equity-focused strategies.
  • Making the HIV Response More Sustainable. Over the last four years, PEPFAR increased its partnerships with local organizations by 29%, and in FY24 PEPFAR has directly supported more than 380 local partners to build long-term sustainable capacity in partner countries. PEPFAR is focused on ensuring that the large majority of HIV prevention, care, and treatment programs in 2030 and beyond will be led and delivered by governments or by other domestic entities with community engagement and government accountability. PEPFAR also partnered with UNAIDS to launch the development of Sustainability Roadmaps in all PEPFAR-supported countries.

Advance HIV Research and Innovation

  • Temporary HIV Remission for Infants. An NIH-supported clinical trial found that, infants who started antiretroviral therapy soon after birth were later able to pause treatment and remain free of detectable HIV for more than a year. Typically, without treatment HIV replication in infants is rapid and detectable within weeks. These findings suggest very early treatment enables the infant immune system to temporarily promote HIV remission.
  • Long-Acting HIV Treatment Reduces Barriers. NIH-funded research found long-acting injectable antiretroviral therapy can better maintain viral suppression in people with HIV who experience barriers to daily pill taking. This research builds on the 2021 FDA approval of long-acting injectable antiretroviral therapy that determined these drugs to be safe and effective—a drug development milestone underpinned by U.S. government supported basic science on HIV’s molecular structure.
  • HIV Treatment During Pregnancy. An NIH-sponsored study adds to the evidence-base that oral and long-acting injectable PrEP is safe before and during pregnancy. Multiple other studies have also confirmed the safety of oral, long-acting, and vaginal ring PrEP formulations during pregnancy.
  • Bridging the Research to Practice Gap. The use of implementation science is essential to test interventions in community settings and address specific challenges with appropriately tailored approaches. The NIH supported 265 implementation science projects that have paired researchers with community partners to test, evaluate, and adapt HIV-related interventions in the EHE jurisdictions.
  • Innovative Models for Leveraging Pharmacies in HIV Services. Several NIH-funded EHE projects aim to identify innovative models to leverage pharmacies for HIV testing, prevention (including HIV PrEP), and care through partnerships between academic institutions and state and local leaders. This work includes advancing workforce training curricula to enable pharmacy students, pharmacists, pharmacies, and pharmacy systems to deliver the spectrum of needed HIV services with ease, equity, and effectiveness.
  • Catalyzing Regional Manufacturing in Africa. In 2022, PEPFAR announced bold manufacturing targets to procure 15 million HIV tests produced in Africa by 2025 and work alongside partners to shift two million patients on first-line antiretroviral therapy (ART) to African-produced products by 2030. Since 2023, PEPFAR procured nearly 100,000 HIV tests from Africa-based manufacturers and worked with partners to launch an Expert Review Panel for Diagnostics for African manufacturers of HIV rapid tests in order to accelerate the availability of HIV rapid tests produced across the continent.

NBA Champs Tweet

From Sunday…

The video clip is 1 minute and 9 seconds long.

From the White House…

11/21/2024:

Remarks by President Biden Honoring the 2024 NBA Champions, the Boston Celtics; the YouTube is 9 minutes and 42 seconds long.

Let me just say, all of you may not know this, but my Secret Service name is “Celtic” — (laughter) — for real — because I’m Irish.  Everybody behind me is — is Irish in their heart.

[snip]

2024 NBA champions: the Bols- — you’re Celtics, right? —  (laughter) — the Boston Celtics.  (Applause.)  Not just any champion but the winningest franchise in league history, and now with a record 18 titles.  (Applause.)

[snip]

You all know what the great Red Auerbach said?  He said, “Celtics aren’t just a basketball team.  They’re a way of life.”  “They’re a way of life.”

[snip]

Laughs.)  Together — together, you guys built one of the deepest teams of all time: incredible players, led by Jayson and Jaylen and Derrick and Drew, Big Al.  (Applause.)

[snip]

So, let me close with this.  Something — I thought I knew a lot about this, but I was surprised to learn this today.  I didn’t realize that in 1963, President John F. Kennedy welcomed the Boston Celtics as the first NBA champions to visit the White House ever — first time.  It’s part of that wonderful dit- –tradition, celebrating the power of sports to bring people together.  It’s a tradition that I’ve honor- — I’ve had the honor to continue. 

No matter the sport, what these champions all have in common are core values, and I mean this sincerely: hard work, teamwork, respect, the knowledge that no one of us is ever as good as all of us can be when we’re together — (applause) — that when we get — when we get knocked down, we get back up.  As my dad would say, “Just get up, Joe.  Get up.” 

Remarks by President Biden Honoring the 2024 NBA Champions, the Boston Celtics; the YouTube is 9 minutes and 42 seconds long. 11/21/2024.

In other White House news…

12/02/2024:

First Lady Jill Biden Announces the 2024 White House Holiday Theme: A “Season of Peace and Light”

Today, First Lady Jill Biden is announcing the 2024 White House Holiday theme: A “Season of Peace and Light”

In a welcome letter to visitors at the beginning of the commemorative 2024 White House Holiday Guidebook, the President and First Lady write:

“The holidays have always held a special place in our hearts, and we’ve loved opening the doors of the People’s House wider and wider each year, continuing the spirit of goodwill and gratitude. America’s story is your story, and we hope you feel at home here. 

“As we celebrate our final holiday season here in the White House, we are guided by the values we hold sacred: faith, family, service to our country, kindness towards our neighbors, and the power of community and connection.

“It has been the honor of our lives to serve as your President and First Lady. Our hope is for the Nation to be blessed with the peace and light of the holiday season. We wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.”

At the end of the holiday guidebook, the President and First Lady write to visitors: “At the holidays, Americans come together every year in fellowship and faith, reminding us that we are stronger as a community than we are apart. The strength of our country, and the soul of our Nation, come from you. May the promise of this “Season of Peace and Light” guide your path forward.”

During an event at the White House later today, the First Lady will officially unveil the holiday and seasonal decor, offer her holiday message to the Nation, and thank the volunteers from across the country who helped decorate the White House for the season. As part of her Joining Forces initiative to support military families, the First Lady invited National Guard families to be the first members of the public to experience the White House holiday decor. As a fellow National Guard mother, Dr. Biden wanted to show appreciation for, and honor, the special role the National Guard plays in serving our country. The National Guard is a unique element of the U.S. military that serves both community and country, in domestic and foreign missions. 

The White House expects to welcome approximately 100,000 visitors during the holiday season. Videos, photos, and information about the décor will be available on WhiteHouse.gov/Holidays. Additionally, over the course of the holidays, a variety of interactive viewing experiences will launch on digital platforms, allowing individuals to engage with the White House during the holidays from home.

First Lady Jill Biden Announces the 2024 White House Holiday Theme: A “Season of Peace and Light”. 12/02/2024.

2024 Holidays at the White House, by the numbers:

  • It takes over 300 dedicated volunteers from across the country working a full week to decorate the inside and outside of the White House.
  • There are 83 Christmas trees throughout the White House.
  • Approximately 9,810 feet of ribbon, over 28,125 ornaments, and over 2,200 doves were used this year to decorate the White House.
  • Over 165,075 holiday lights decorate the trees, garlands, wreaths, and displays
  • The Gingerbread White House includes 25 sheets of gingerbread dough, 10 sheets of sugar cookie dough, 65 pounds of pastillage, 45 pounds of chocolate, 50 pounds of royal icing, and 10 pounds of gum paste.

A “Season of Peace and Light,” the 2024 White House Holiday Theme:

Each room and design element throughout the White House holiday display encourages guests to embrace the peace and light of the holiday season.

The East Wing

Guests enter the East Wing of the White House under stunning, rotating starlight. Lush greenery and garlands adorn the East Wing Lobby, enveloping guests in the peaceful tranquility of nature as they begin their holiday tour of the White House.

The Gold Star Tree

The first Christmas tree display featured on the White House tour is dedicated to Gold Star Families. This year’s Gold Star Tree exhibit is constructed of six oversized and stacked stars, representing all six branches of the military. Names of fallen service members are written on gold star ornaments on the four accompanying Christmas trees.

The Gold Star Trees honor the heroic men and women of our Nation’s military who have laid down their lives for our country, those who are Missing in Action, and the families who carry on their legacies. May God bless our troops and their families.

The East Colonnade

As guests proceed down the East Colonnade, they are surrounded by a collection of bells, symbolizing the peaceful sounds of the holiday season. Brass-colored bells suspend from the ceiling and sleigh bells line the archways. In the East Garden Room, just before entering the historic mansion, visitors are greeted by a three-dimensional horse-drawn sleigh, pulling a Christmas tree decorated with bells and lights.

The Library

A forest of vintage ceramic Christmas trees are featured throughout the library, twinkling in all of the colors of the holiday season. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt designated this room to serve as the White House Library in 1935. This space now holds approximately 2,700 volumes of books focusing primarily on American history and literature. A classroom teacher for forty years, First Lady Jill Biden added children’s books to the White House Library collection, in collaboration with the Library of Congress.

The Vermeil Room

The décor of the Vermeil Room (vermeil is the French term for silver dipped in gold) is devoted to floral displays, using a variety of materials.  On the walls of this room are portraits of first ladies, including Mamie Eisenhower, Claudia “Lady Bird” Johnson, and Jacqueline Kennedy. Over sixty years ago, Mrs. Kennedy founded the White House Historical Association to protect, preserve, and provide public access to the rich history of the People’s House.

The China Room

Food is love. A baker’s bench and artisanal breads set the scene in this room, reminding guests of the peaceful, patient, and loving process of baking bread.

The China Room, which was first introduced as a display room by First Lady Edith Wilson in 1917, houses tableware used by past presidential families. Most presidents, beginning with George Washington, are represented by either a personal or State Service of porcelain, glass, or silver. Each piece recalls the State Dinners and celebratory meals that have brought together world leaders, diplomats, and other White House guests.

Diplomatic Reception Room

This fall, First Lady Jill Biden expanded and enhanced the public tour of the White House. The Diplomatic Reception Room, used to welcome foreign dignitaries, and home to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s famous fireside chats, is now open to the general public for the first time. Holiday florals and fruit are on display in this room, as a nod to the importance of hospitality and grace to peaceful diplomacy.

The East Room

A reflective canopy wraps the ceiling and windows, surrounding guests in a peaceful snowfall. Two large Christmas trees flank the center door, with the tree bases illuminated with silhouettes of Americans holding hands, giving movement and energy to the décor.

As the largest room in the White House, the East Room has hosted public receptions, ceremonies, bill signings, and other memorable occasions. It also includes Gilbert Stuart’s portrait of George Washington, which First Lady Dolley Madison instructed workers to save in 1814 when the White House was about to be set aflame during the War of 1812.

The East Room includes a Neapolitan crèche, or Nativity scene, with over forty figurines, most

dating back to the eighteenth century. The crèche has been displayed during every White House holiday season since 1967.

The Green Room

In the Green Room, light shines through colored glass ornaments and prisms, reflecting beautiful hues throughout the room. Once Thomas Jefferson’s dining room, the Green Room houses Henry Ossawa Tanner’s painting, Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City. Tanner mixed actual sand into his paint to illustrate the windswept beaches of our coasts.

The Official White House Menorah

Displayed just outside the Green Room, in the Cross Hall, is the official White House Menorah, created in 2021 by the White House Executive Residence Carpenters’ Shop. The Menorah was constructed using wood that was removed more than seventy years ago during the Truman-era renovation of the White House.

The Blue Room

The Blue Room showcases the official White House Christmas Tree. This year’s tree is an 18½ foot Fraser Fir from North Carolina and stands floor to ceiling, filling the oval room. Every year, the Blue Room chandelier is removed to accommodate the Christmas tree’s full height.

The stunning tree features a light-filled, whimsical carousel, with names of every state, territory, and the District of Columbia, showcased around the tree’s décor. With bright lights, vivid colors, and three-dimensional holiday candy treats, guests will gaze in wonder as they are taken on a delightful adventure around the tree.

This year’s official White House Christmas Tree was presented to the First Lady by David, Sam, and Jim Cartner of Cartner’s Christmas Tree Farm in Newland, North Carolina, the 2024 Grand Champion Grower in the National Christmas Tree Association’s annual contest.

State Dining Room

As part of the First Lady’s Joining Forces initiative to support military families, Dr. Biden invited families of the USS Delaware and the USS Gabrielle Giffords, two U.S. Navy vessels for which she serves as a sponsor, to provide the colorful paper chain garlands hanging throughout the room. The ornaments on the Christmas trees were crafted as self-portraits by students from across the country, ensuring that children see themselves reflected in this year’s holiday display.

The Gingerbread White House

A favorite for all during the holidays is the annual Gingerbread White House. This year’s sweet creation draws inspiration from the overall holiday décor theme of a “Season of Peace and Light.” A glowing starburst shines over the Gingerbread White House, and the sugary replica includes a cheerful scene of ice skaters on the South Lawn.

The Red Room

In the Red Room, white paper doves carry messages of peace. Drawings from children around the country to the President and First Lady are displayed throughout the room. Large, illuminated gift boxes are placed under the Red Room’s Christmas tree.

The Cross Hall and Grand Foyer

The Cross Hall unites the State Rooms of the White House, with the East Room and State Dining Room at the opposite ends, and the Green, Blue, and Red Rooms opening from the south side. The slightly arched ceiling springs from the cast plaster molding designed during the Theodore Roosevelt Renovation of 1902.

Suspended overhead in the Cross Hall is a cascade of peace doves flying above. Christmas trees trimmed with red and green plaid décor, as well as a vintage red truck, complete the holiday scenery.

2024 White House Holiday Guide Illustrator

Children’s book author and illustrator, Zoe Ranucci, created artwork throughout the 2024 White House Holiday Guide, which perfectly captures a “Season of Peace and Light” at the White House.

2024 White House Holiday Recognitions and Support
The President and First Lady thank the Executive Residence staff and the team of over 300 volunteers who dedicated their time, energy, and talents to transform the White House for the holiday season.

Bryan Rafanelli, of Rafanelli Events, worked closely with Dr. Biden to lead the creative efforts of a talented team to bring her vision to life for the White House holiday décor, celebrating a “Season of Peace and Light.”

The President and First Lady are grateful for the support from the National Confectioners Association and the creative design teams of Birch Event Design, BMF Media Group, Cheree Berry Paper & Design, East Olivia, Frost Chicago, Glitterville Studios, HMR Designs, Kehoe Designs, MC², Mot Designs, Patch NYC, Rafanelli Events, Red Bliss Design, Silver Lining Design Group, and 4 Wall Entertainment.

First Lady Jill Biden Announces the 2024 White House Holiday Theme: A “Season of Peace and Light”. 12/02/2024.

First Lady Jill Biden Delivers Remarks Offering her Holiday Message to the Nation @12:45 PM D.C., time:

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About Tiff 3046 Articles
Member of the Free Press who is politically homeless and a political junkie.