White House Decorations Are a Laughingstock

The White House revealed images of its Christmas decorations this week, prompting much joking. According to tradition, the first lady is in charge of decorations. Melania Trump filled a corridor with 40 tall red trees and declared “American Treasures” to be the official theme for the Christmas decorations. The internet reacted by making jokes.

The White House presented the decorations to the media and launched a one-minute video showing different rooms and corridors. More than 6,000 meters of Christmas lights (approximately 19,685 feet), 12,000 bows and 14,000 ornaments (some containing Melania’s anti-bullying campaign slogan) were installed over several days with the help of 225 volunteers. The official tree, in the Blue Room, is 5.5 meters high (approximately 18 feet high). “The choice of red is an extension of the pales, or stripes, found in the presidential seal designed by our Founding Fathers. It’s a symbol of valor and bravery,” the first lady explained to The Washington Post.

The memes were quick to appear. Some placed white hats on top of the trees, alluding to the adaptation of Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale” to the screen. Others compared the trees to Elmo, the monster from “Sesame Street.” Some recalled the fictitious game, “The Cones of Dunshire,” from “Parks and Recreation.”

There have been constant references to “The Shining.” Last year, the white tree corridor led many to compare the scenery to a horror movie and someone had the idea to add a picture of Jack Nicholson. This year, the choice of red led many to say “all work and no play makes Melania be best,” and resulted in a meme containing the two twins from “The Shining” in the corridor. Let us not forget that the White House has a room called the Red Room, which Melania decorated with crowns made from pencils containing the “Be Best” logo.

According to The Washington Post, Jackie Kennedy was the first to set themes for the White House Christmas decorations. The first theme in 1961 was “The Nutcracker Suite,” with elements from the Tchaikovsky’s iconic ballet, “The Nutcracker.” Nancy Reagan chose the theme “A Musical Christmas.” Hillary Clinton sought inspiration in “Santa’s Workshop.” During Barack Obama’s presidency, the family dogs, Sunny and Bo, appeared many times in the decorations.