Bidens call into Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade

Joe and Jill Biden called into the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thursday to give thanks for troops and firefighters while they spend their holiday on Nantucket.  

‘I want to say thanks to the firefighters and police officers, first responders. They never take a break,’ the president said.

‘And God bless our troops for sure,’ the first lady added.

‘And by the way, we’re going to be talking to some of our troops later in the day, both here and abroad. I hope everybody remembers. We remember them every single day. God bless our troops for real,’ the president said.

It was the second year in a row the Bidens called into the annual parade. This year’s event features Mariah Carey and Paula Abdul. It will have 27 giant balloons and 31 floats.

NBC’s Dylan Dreyer admitted she was worried the call wouldn’t go through. 

‘I don’t think I can hear you, can you hear me Mr. Persident,’ she said.

The Bidens could be heard saying something inaudible. 

‘Hello, Happy Thanksgiving Mr. President, are you there?,’ she said. 

‘I was so worried this call wasn’t going to go through,’ she added after the president finally answered.

She had to wait about 17 seconds to get a clear response from the Bidens as there appeared to be difficulties with the connection. They said they planned to eat dinner with their family and then perhaps take a walk on the beach. 

‘Well, we’re just gonna have dinner with the family, probably take a walk on the beach,’ Jill Biden noted.

The first couple – along with son Hunter, his wife Melissa Cohen, their son Beau and their daughter Ashley – arrived on Nantucket on Tuesday evening.

The clan is once again camped out at the luxurious Nantucket compound owned by billionaire businessman turned philanthropist David Rubenstein – the same place they stayed last year for the holiday. 

The $20 million, 13,000 square foot home sits on 13 acres of waterfront property. It has access to a private beach.

The Bidens have been going to Nantucket for 46 years since Biden was a senator. The first couple are scheduled to return to the White House on Sunday.

In his 2017 memoir ‘Promise me Dad,’ Biden wrote that Thanksgiving in 1975 was the first holiday he and his now-wife Jill spent together, going to Nantucket with his young sons Beau and Hunter for a little bonding time.

They rarely have missed a holiday on Nantucket since. 

THE BIDEN FAMILY ARRIVES: (from left) President Joe Biden, First Lady Jill Biden, Ashley Biden, Melissa Cohen, baby Beau Biden and Hunter Biden step off Air Force One for their Nantucket Thanksgiving break Tuesday night 

The Bidens will once again camp out at the luxurious Nantucket compound owned by billionaire businessman turned philanthropist David Rubenstein – the same place they stayed last year for the holiday

The island became a spot of many memories for the family. Beau proposed to his future wife Hallie at the town’s 2001 Christmas tree lighting and married her at a downtown church. 

One of the few Thanksgivings the Bidens missed in Nantucket was in 2015, which took place about six months after Beau Biden died. The family went to Rome instead. They also skipped going in 2020 because of the COVID pandemic. 

When they called into the parade on Thursday, President Biden noted that ‘we have been coming up on Nantucket since we first got married with the whole family. It’s become a tradition.’

The White House also released a Thankgiving message from the Bidens on its social media accounts: ‘Today and every day, we have so much to be grateful for. Happy Thanksgiving to our service members and military families whose loved ones are on duty and unable to be with their families. We hope your day is filled with joy and gratitude.’