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VP Residence Hanukkah Invite Mistakenly Proclaims “Celebrating 50 Years of Christmas”

Short Summary: A Hanukkah invitation from the vice president’s residence mistakenly used a headline reading “Celebrating 50 Years Of Christmas.” Jewish Insider reporter Gabby Deutch shared a photo of the green-and-gold invite for a Dec. 15 cocktail reception hosted by Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance. The mix-up echoes a 2008 White House incident that led to corrected Hanukkah invitations featuring a donated menorah.

12:07 AM, 12/05/2025Culture
VP Residence Hanukkah Invite Mistakenly Proclaims “Celebrating 50 Years of Christmas”

Hanukkah Invitation at Vice President’s Residence Mixes Up Holidays

Oy vey. An invitation for a Hanukkah reception at the vice president’s residence contained a conspicuous and embarrassing error that referred to the wrong holiday.

The green-and-gold card for a cocktail-attire reception on December 15 named “The Vice President and The Second Lady” as hosts and described the event as a “Hanukkah Reception at the Vice President’s Residence.” Yet the top of the invitation bore a contrasting headline: “The Golden Noel: CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF CHRISTMAS AT THE VICE PRESIDENT’S RESIDENCE.” The invitation image was shared on social media by Jewish Insider senior national correspondent Gabby Deutch.

Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance are not the first officials to make this kind of holiday mix-up. The episode recalls a similar 2008 incident during the George W. Bush administration, when White House Hanukkah invitations included Christmas imagery—such as a wreath on the White House and a horse-drawn cart pulling a Christmas tree.

“Mrs. Bush is apologetic. It is just something that fell through the cracks,” said then-press secretary Sally McDonough, who apologized at the time and said corrected Hanukkah invitations would be issued featuring a menorah donated to the White House during President Harry Truman’s administration.

Small details on printed event materials can cause outsized embarrassment when holiday imagery or wording is mismatched with the celebration being announced. Officials typically correct such errors quickly and reissue invitations that reflect the appropriate symbols and wording for the holiday in question.

What Happened: A Hanukkah reception invite for Dec. 15 used a headline celebrating Christmas. The error was shared online and recalled an earlier White House mistake in 2008 that prompted an apology and corrected invitations.

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