President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden on Airforce One.
President Joe Biden will arrive on St. Croix on Tuesday with his wife, First Lady Jill Biden, the White House has announced.
The president and first lady will arrive at the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport and spend the New Year on the Big Island — as St. Croix is called — with their family, according to the White House.
The Consortium on Dec. 16 reported that Mr. Biden would usher in the new year on St. Croix.
The president's and first lady's arrival to the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport will be open press, meaning there may be an opportunity for the media to ask questions.
In 2015 and again in 2016, Mr. Biden welcomed the new year on St. Croix.
During his visits in the recent past, Mr. Biden was vice president during President Barack Obama's second term in office. His arrival Tuesday will mark his first visit to the USVI as a sitting president, and among the rare visits that U.S. presidents have made to the U.S. Virgin Islands while in office.
Mr. Obama visited St. Thomas in March 2008 when he was an Illinois senator and democratic candidate hopeful for U.S. president. Mr. Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush did not visit the territory, and Mr. Bush's predecessor, Bill Clinton, visited the USVI in 2018, which was long after Mr. Clinton's presidency.
Herbert Clark Hoover was the first sitting U.S. President to visit the U.S. Virgin Islands, landing on St. Thomas on March 17, 1931. At the time, Paul M. Pearson was governor, having arrived just ten days prior and was appointed the USVI's first civilian governor.
Former U.S. President Harry S. Truman visited St. Croix in February, 1948, and delivered a speech in Christiansted while a sitting president.
Mr. Biden's arrival is expected to strain St. Croix's limited hospitality stock, including hotel rooms and car rentals — two of the most in-demand items during the holiday season on St. Croix, which is also the month St. Croix celebrates the Crucian Christmas Festival.
