12/23/24 No White House Pardon for Me

No White House Pardon for Me

President Biden reportedly pardoned 1500 Americans in one day which was a record. I am not one of them. I was back to Washington DC in the White House earlier this month after being invited to attend the Christmas Decoration Tour. 300 volunteers work together to decorate the White House before Christmas. I noted that I do not make political contributions with the exception of a small one to the Mayor of Madison, South Dakota. Mayors run on a non-partisan basis in South Dakota which I think is a good idea. Mayor Lindsay and his wife are college friends of ours and he had worked with the White House on a water project, the Lewis and Clark Regional Water System begun in 2003, to provide clean water to 20 communities in SD, MN and IA. The completion was funded by the Infrastructure Act. The Lindsays were invited to tour the White House Christmas display and my wife and I were allowed to tag along. It was fun. I thought about asking for a pre-pardon while I was there just in case, that I have ever said anything to garner past or future animus. Curious about what was behind the doors in a hallway between rooms, my hand reached out to touch the handle. Boy, were we being watched closely. I got immediately yelled at by the staff, so could have used a pardon before I even left the White House. At the very least that likely ensured that I was on Santa’s naughty list. We did go to Mass with our friends at the Basilica of the National Shrine of Immaculate Conception after the tour so probably had better luck getting my pardon there, despite being Lutheran.