Former President Donald Trump has drawn widespread ridicule after injecting political commentary into what is traditionally a festive and apolitical event: the NORAD Santa tracker phone calls with children on Christmas Eve.
An Unconventional Festive Message
Alongside former First Lady Melania Trump, the ex-president participated in the annual tradition run by the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). The military organisation, which typically monitors North American airspace for threats, switches its focus each 24th December to track the global journey of Santa Claus. This year marked the 70th anniversary of the beloved tracking programme, which fielded over 100,000 calls from families worldwide.
However, Trump's conversations with children took several unexpected turns. In one call, he informed a youngster, "Pennsylvania is great, we won Pennsylvania, actually, three times. We won it a landslide." During another exchange, he was heard telling a child, "We track Santa. We want to ensure that Santa is behaving. We want to make sure that he's not infiltrated, that we're not infiltrating into our country a bad Santa." He also mentioned Oklahoma, stating, "Santa loves Oklahoma like I do. You know, Oklahoma was very good to me in the election."
Swift Backlash on Social Media
The unusual choice of topics for conversations with children eagerly awaiting news of Santa's location prompted an immediate and fierce reaction on social media platform X. Users quickly branded the former president's comments as bizarre and inappropriate for the setting.
One user quipped, "I just hope that Trump doesn’t deport Santa." Another called him a "bumbling old fool," while a third simply stated, "So embarrassing." One more extreme comment read, "Drugs are on my wish list from Santa so will Trump blow up Santa and the Reindeer?" highlighting the surreal nature of the political remarks during a childhood ritual.
The Tradition Behind the Controversy
The NORAD Tracks Santa operation is a massive logistical effort, requiring significant manpower to allow children to follow Saint Nick's progress in real time. A senior NORAD official emphasised the magic of the event, noting, "NORAD tracks Santa, but only Santa knows his route, which means we cannot predict where and when he will arrive at your house."
The incident has underscored how even long-standing, non-partisan traditions can become entangled in political discourse. The backlash focuses on the perceived inappropriateness of discussing election results and unsubstantiated claims of infiltration with young callers who were simply hoping to hear about reindeer and presents.
