President Trump is facing a growing controversy about his Christmas visit with American troops stationed in Iraq and in Germany.
The president and first lady were greeted warmly, but some have complained that the visit seemed to be more of a campaign stop, with Trump signing "Make America Great Again" hats for some of the troops.
While active-duty troops are allowed to bring personal items to be signed by the president, they are not allowed to participate in political rallies.
The president hit back at the criticism on Twitter, saying: “If these brave young people ask me to sign their hat. I will sign. Can you imagine my saying no?”
He also made it clear that he did not bring any hats to hand out to the troops.
The controversy comes as his New Year’s Eve plans have been unveiled.
First, the president canceled his Christmas in Florida, now he's nixing His New Year's Eve plans because of the ongoing government shutdown, according to acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney.
The annual New Year's Eve party at Mar-A-Lago is said to be one of the president's favorite nights because he gets to see all his old friends from Palm Beach, but it won’t happen this year. The first lady is already at the estate to be with their son, Barron.
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