No trick: 2,000 kids knocking on White House door (Halloween at the White House) pics (Updated)

[Kadie]

No trick: 2,000 kids knocking on White House door
By BEN FELLER, Associated Press Writer Ben Feller, Associated Press Writer – 12 mins ago

WASHINGTON – It's the ultimate trick-or-treating treasure, that one house on the block that offers the coolest candy and surprises galore.

This year it's the big gated place on Pennsylvania Avenue, No. 1600. Welcome to the White House, boys and girls.

President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama awaited more than 2,000 children Saturday night from the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia. The Obamas themselves were to spend time handing out goodies to the trick-or-treaters on the most famous front porch in America, the North Portico.

What do you get for Halloween at the White House?

Not bad, kids: A box of White House M&Ms with the president's signature imprinted on it, a sweet dough butter cookie made by White House pastry chef Bill Yosses, a National Park Foundation Ranger activity book, and a serving of dried fruit mix made up of cherries, apricots, pears, apples and papayas.

Yosses, whose team assembled 2,000 cellophane goody bags, joked that the idea of filling the bags only with healthy treats was vetoed because they didn't want the White House to get egged Saturday night.

more...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_obamas_halloween



A White House pastry chef decorates Halloween cookies with chocolate icing spiders hanging from orange White Houses in the pastry kitchen of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2009. The cookies will be given out to Halloween trick-or-treaters at the White House on Saturday.
(AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)


White House pastry chef Bill Yosses displays the Halloween White House cookie to be given to trick-or-treaters at the White House in Washington, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2009.
(AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)


Packets containing of boxes of Presidential M&Ms, orange White House Halloween cookies, and dried fruit are ready on a tray in the White House pastry kitchen in Washington Thursday, Oct. 29, 2009, to be given out to trick-or-treaters on Saturday, Halloween.
(AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)



Sisters Paola Lipton (3rd R) and Daisy Lipton (2nd R) wait in line with their mother Elizabeth Franco (TOP R) and other local school children for the start of a Halloween reception by U.S. President Barack Obama and his family at the White House in Washington, October 31, 2009.
REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES POLITICS SOCIETY)


Local school children Simone Pierre-Louis (L) and Elizabeth Haley (R) take pictures as they wait in line for the start of a Halloween reception by U.S. President Barack Obama and his family at the White House in Washington, October 31, 2009.
REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES POLITICS SOCIETY)



Members of the protest group Code Pink taunt local school children with chants about the war in Afghanistan as the children and their families arrive for a Halloween reception by U.S. President Barack Obama and his family at the White House in Washington, October 31, 2009.
REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES CONFLICT POLITICS SOCIETY)


Nathalie Willes performs on the Nouth Lawn of the White House as they prepare for the Halloween celebrations at the White House, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009, in Washington.
(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)


Performers prepare their costumes, for the Halloween celebrations at the White House, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009, in Washington.
(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)


Performers in their Halloween costumes, march on the White House ground as they prepare for the Halloween celebrations at the White House, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009, in Washington.
(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

edited to add...


Performers greet local school children as they arrive for a Halloween reception by U.S. President Barack Obama and his family at the White House in Washington, October 31, 2009.
REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES POLITICS SOCIETY)


Performers in their Halloween costumes, perform on the North Lawn of the White House during the Halloween celebrations at the White House, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009, in Washington.
(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)


Children and their parents line up on the North Lawn of the White House during the Halloween celebrations at the White House, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009, in Washington.
(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

edited again to add...


President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama hand out Halloween candy at the White House, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009, in Washington.
(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)


President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama hand out candy at the White House, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009 in Washington, on Halloween.
(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

[alsame]

1. For those lucky kids this will be the best Halloween ever! Thanks. nt

[bobbolink]

18. Code Pink became an ego trip quite some time ago.

Some of those kids standing in line are more mature.

It's too bad... they could have been a real force for "change".

[NYC_SKP]

2. I'm not surprised that Code Pink could NOT resist a chance to Dress Up, but...

I wish that, just this once, they would have left their signs at home.

:eyes:

[Kadie]

4. I agree.

Wished they had let the children have their fun.

[bbinacan]

3. code pink taunting children...

fuck code pink.

[Raine]

6. Agree

what they did is really tacky.

[bbinacan]

11. Yep

just leave kids alone. They were out of line. :toast:

[hileeopnyn8d]

14. Eh

It's possible that Reuters took a bit of liberty with the caption.

If not, I agree, in the words of Pink Floyd - Leave them kids alone!

[Orsino]

17. Well, that's the spin we're supposed to swallow.

I think that the taunts were likely aimed elsewhere, at adults.

[bbinacan]

20. In front of the children?

This was uncalled for. Period.

[Orsino]

29. That's a fairer assessment, I believe.

I think it highly unlikely that as strangers, the Pinks were allowed to corral children, or even to approach them. Perhaps the children had to walk past.

But how did the children see it? A group of adults in gory outfits, perhaps yelling? Unless the kids were forced to hang out and think deeply about the actual deaths Code Pink decries, this sounds no worse than other Halloween hauntings.

[stray cat]

22. Pedophiles also go to children's parties to make conversation to the parents -

:sarcasm:

[stray cat]

23. Would it be ok if it were fundamentalists yelling that the kids were possessed?

[blondeatlast]

28. Very good point.

:thumbsup:

[Orsino]

30. Perhaps.

I've heard much worse in Halloween houses of horror, without fundamentalist overtones. Context is all. How much hostility are you thinking of? Outside the fence? On public property? With a bit of distance between protesters and children?

[tammywammy]

5. What lucky kids!

It looks like a great time.

[petronius]

7. Hope they found time to put some demonic curses on those cookies

:)

Looks like great fun for the kids!

[blogslut]

8. Dagnabbit, Kadie!

You beat me by 13 minutes...spooooky!

[Kadie]

13. LOL

:D

[janx]

9. The musicians' skeleton costumes are GREAT!

What does the music sound like? Oh man, what fun!

[Cha]

16. I know, janx~ I'm loving those

skeleton band suits!

[janx]

25. But I want to hear what they play!

:rofl:

I have to abandon DU after playing here all day, my only day off, but I love those costumes and can only imagine what the musicians play. Cheers and hugs to you--

:toast: :hug:

[Cha]

31. The Skelton Dancing Band~

We'll have to wait for the youtube but here's some more info for you, janx.

<snip>

"The cast and crew of Redmoon Theater won’t soon forget Halloween 2009. The iconic Chicago troupe, famous for its hugely imaginative human/machine/puppet spectacle theater, was in Washington D.C. – make that the White House – at the invitation of president and Mrs. Obama for the official White House Halloween festivities.

“It was absolutely a Halloween I will never forget,” said Frank Maugeri, artistic director of Redmoon Theater. “When the official photographer shot the picture of all of us from Redmoon with the president and Mrs. Obama I just said out loud, ‘This is the best day of my life!. It was just a very powerful, emotional day for me, for all of us. To be able to represent Chicago was just the most wonderful of the whole thing.”

<MORE>
http://www.suntimes.com/entertainment/stage/1857973,redmoon-barack-obama-halloween-103109.article
_20091031_20_32_47_130-282-400.imageContent

:hi:janx:hug:

[laughingliberal]

10. That would be the coolest Halloween!

I'm so glad there's little kids in the White House again :)

[Diane R]

12. CodePink really crossed a line...that's unacceptable. And, I'm usually a strong supporter.

[Cha]

15. Thank you, these pics are so much

fun to look at.. "Yosses, whose team assembled 2,000 cellophane goody bags, joked that the idea of filling the bags only with healthy treats was vetoed because they didn't want the White House to get egged Saturday night."":bounce:

I gave my grandbaby niece a "healthy" goodie bag for Halloween..she loved it:D She said "AP-PLE!" And, it was organic.

[bobbolink]

19. When it comes to events like this, the Obamas are tops. With health care, war and homeless

issues... not so much. :(

[malaise]

21. Nice pics

including Code Pink.

[Kadie]

24. *** More Pics***

to late to add to op


President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama hand out Halloween candy at the White House, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009 in Washington.
(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)


First lady Michelle Obama (L) comforts a crying child with the promise of a cookie as she and U.S. President Barack Obama (C) greet local school children on Halloween at the White House in Washington October 31, 2009.
REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES POLITICS SOCIETY)

[dysfunctional press]

26. i was watching nbc news, and i swear i saw someone dressed as an ent...

it looked incredibly cool.

[blondeatlast]

27. I LOVE America. (Now.) nt