To paraphrase Harry Truman, if you want to make a video in Washington, get a dog.
It worked last year, so first lady Jill Biden is doing it again, only this time she has enlisted the Bidens’ new puppy, Commander, to make a Valentine’s Day “message of love” that will appear at the top of Sunday’s Puppy Bowl (Animal Planet and Discovery+, 2 p.m. EST/11 a.m. PST), the annual pre-Super Bowl tradition.
That good boy Commander is going to be a big star – emphasis on BIG. For a puppy, he’s already a major presence, as seen in the video with Biden, chasing a ball down the East Wing Colonnade and playing with the first lady in the White House movie theater as pooches from Puppy Bowl XVIII scamper across the screen.
“Valentine’s Day is one of my favorite holidays, because it’s all about love,” Biden says at the start. (We learned this last year, less than a month after she and President Joe Biden moved in, when she decorated the White House lawn with giant Valentine’s balloon messages of hope and healing.)
“What’s so wonderful about having pets is they give you unconditional love, joy and comfort every day,” says Biden, who’s wearing a woolly turtleneck sweater with the word “Amour” embroidered on the front.
“All of us are wishing you a very happy Valentine’s Day,” she concludes.
First couples have long been known to use their pets for promotional purposes, and lately they’ve adopted modern methods such as videos and social media. Recall that President George W. Bush’s nippy Scottish terrier Barney used to star in an annual Christmas video.
Last year, the Bidens used their dogs Champ and Major in a special wear-a-mask PSA for Puppy Bowl XVII. The video combined Americans’ passion for dogs, their delight in the return of canine cuties to the White House, and the massive TV audience on Super Bowl weekend to help support the first lady’s early efforts in 2021 to promote face masks in the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year’s message is love for our pets and for the Puppy Bowl, which promotes pet adoption and the thrill of giving a pooch a second chance.
But “our sweet, good boy” Champ died in June at the age of 13, the Bidens announced on Instagram. “He was our constant, cherished companion during the last 13 years and was adored by the entire Biden family,” they wrote.
Meanwhile, Major, a frisky 3-year-old rescue German shepherd, was sent off to a quieter life with friends of the family after several incidents of aggressive behavior with White House personnel.
Enter Commander Biden, who arrived in December and immediately was pictured chasing balls on the White House lawn.
And in January, welcome to Willow Biden, the new White House moggie, a 2-year-old, green-eyed, gray-and-white barn cat who introduced herself to Jill Biden in the middle of a campaign speech in Pennsylvania in 2020 and stole the first lady’s heart. She named the cat after her own hometown of Willow Grove, Pennsylvania.
“Willow is settling into the White House with her favorite toys, treats and plenty of room to smell and explore,” said Michael LaRosa, the first lady’s spokesperson, when the cat moved in.
Next year, let’s see some video of Willow and Commander, snuggling like … well, cats and dogs.
