Melania Trump's red topiary trees a hit at Christmas parties
WASHINGTON (AP) — Melania Trump's cranberry topiary trees may have left some of her critics seeing red, but they turned out to be a Christmas hit at the White House.
The trees were among several new ideas the Trumps introduced this holiday season. Trump also did fewer official photo ops and largely froze out the press during a four-week stretch of 21 holiday parties. Many of the soirees unfolded under the threat of a partial government shutdown that took effect Saturday.
The red trees featured on a green carpet along the East Wing colonnade turned out to be quite the attraction: Pedestrian traffic jams formed as Trump's many party guests clamored to be photographed in front of the unusual holiday landscape.