Turkeys Corn and Cob vie to be Trump's last Thanksgiving pardoning

Similar in weight and the same age, one of the two turkeys will receive official pardoning on Tuesday

Corn and Cobb, a pair of turkeys that will be pardoned by US President Donald Trump, walk inside their hotel room at the Willard Intercontinental Hotel in Washington, DC on November 23, 2020, while awaiting the White House pardoning ceremony later this week ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.  / AFP / SAUL LOEB
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Two turkeys are living a life of luxury inside a Washington DC hotel, they were hatched on the same day and have in five months grown to roughly the same weight – yet only one of them will be receiving a presidential pardon.

Corn and Cob, two broad-breasted white turkeys who are candidates for this year's Thanksgiving pardoning, will on Tuesday attend the annual presidential pardon, strut their stuff inside their hotel room at the Willard Intercontinental Hotel.

The pair were bred in Iowa, the eighth set of pardoning birds to visit the White House from that state. Choosing which birds to send depends on a number of factors.

President Trump pardons Corn the turkey for Thanksgiving

President Trump pardons Corn the turkey for Thanksgiving

“It is up to the farmer to work with the turkeys, place them on a podium and make sure they are comfortable with being around extra noises and lights,” Gretta Irwin, executive director of the Iowa Turkey Federation told WIZM News.

“Really, it is just trying to find that turkey that has a great temperament and look proud.”

According to the White House website, Corn weighs just over 19 kilograms and likes to snack on sweetcorn, Cob likes soybeans and weighs just over 18.5kg.

The White House is running an online poll for people to choose which bird to pardon.

Turkey farmers present birds to the president for pardoning each year in a tradition that dates back to the 1870s.

The unpardoned turkey will not end up as dinner, they are usually sent for exhibition and have since 2016 retired at Gobbler's Rest in Blacksburg, Virginia.

The US is at an unsettling moment, with a resurgent pandemic and a tricky transition between Donald Trump and president-elect Joe Biden.