When Prime Minister Ben-Gurion visited the United States in 1951, he searched for a suitable gift to give to Harry S. Truman. The Jewish Museum suggested the menorah, and Prime Minister Ben-Gurion presented it to Truman on his birthday. The tradition came full circle in 2008, when President George W Bush – the first president to establish an annual Hanukkah celebration at the White House – borrowed the same menorah for that year’s celebration.
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Hanukkah at the White House | History Honors 250
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