One of the most ridiculous holiday traditions in America is the presidential turkey pardon that takes place each Thanksgiving. The President “pardons” a pair of turkeys from the day’s festivities and keeps them from being butchered. “For this turkey and his traveling companion, this will not be their last Thanksgiving,” Bush said. “By virtue of an unconditional presidential pardon, they are safe from harm.”

The most telling paragraph, though, is this one, which underscores the awful treatment that turkeys (and other food and dairy animals) undergo on an everyday basis:

Actually, the birds may not see another Thanksgiving. They have been so fattened up they can’t get around well, and their hearts and lungs are overtaxed. The comfortable retirement compound waiting at Frying Pan Park in Herndon was empty yesterday morning—because the last two Clinton birds are dead, as were the previous two by Thanksgiving a year ago.