FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

Identity

The White House Can Barely Organize a Damn Easter Egg Roll

The administration's scramble to pull off the major event is a nice metaphor for the utter chaos of Trump's reign so far.​​
Image by Mark Wilson / Getty Images

Although press secretary Sean Spicer once had the distinct honor of cosplaying the Easter bunny during the annual White House Egg Roll under President George W. Bush, the administration he now proudly serves is struggling to get the event together, according to a New York Times report.

For the past 138 years, the White House has celebrated Easter with an annual egg roll, usually complete with celebrity performances, Sesame Street characters, and other family-friendly entertainment. But according to the Times, the understaffed, disorganized White House has scrambled to get even the most basic details in place for this year's event, scheduled for April 17.

Advertisement

Back in February, the manufacturers of the specialty eggs used every year tweeted at the Trumps, begging them to place their order in time. Since then, the White House reportedly only ordered roughly half the number of commemorative eggs that the Obamas ordered last year, as they're only planning to host around 20,000 people—17,000 fewer than attended in 2016. Considering how fussy Trump was about the inauguration crowd size, he probably won't be happy about the lower turnout.

Additionally, families from Washington, DC, public schools usually receive invitations to the event, but this year the White House has yet to reach out. And while the Easter Egg Roll is typically decorated with an array of Sesame Street characters, PBS's director of media relations, Jennifer Rankin Byrne, said the organization will only be sending over one character this year but declined to say who.

"It's the single most high-profile event that takes place at the White House each year, and the White House and the first lady are judged on how well they put it on," Melinda Bates, who organized the event for all eight years of the Clinton administration, told the Times. "I'm really concerned for the Trump people, because they have failed to fill some really vital posts, and this thing is all hands on deck." The way Bates sees it: "If you can pull off an Easter Egg Roll, you can do anything."

While the Easter Egg Roll might seem like small potatoes compared to the countless real problems the Trump administration has, the whole thing is a nice metaphor for the utter chaos of Trump's reign so far. Between the administration's struggle to push through healthcare legislation and a controversial travel ban, it doesn't seem that surprising it can't even pull off a damn egg roll.

Follow Eve Peyser on Twitter.