President Trump won't host White House Christmas party for press this year

President Donald Trump apparently does not wish to share Christmas cheer with those he has pegged "the enemy of the American people."

A war on Christmas parties? The White House won't host its annual reception for members of the news media this year.

Although the White House has not formally announced the cancellation of the event, no invites have been received so far. The White House did not respond to USA TODAY's request for comment on the party.

President Donald Trump did host the party last year, but the time was moved to the day, making it more difficult for people to bring their families, and the president did not pose for photos with the guests, which had been one of the event's traditions. According to Fox News, President Bill Clinton even did the photo line days after he was impeached.

CNN, which has long been attacked by Trump as "fake news," skipped last year's event, citing Trump's "continued attacks on freedom of the press." Last month, the White House revoked CNN White House correspondent Jim Acosta's credentials after a testy exchange with the president. A court later forced the White House to return the reporter's pass.

Trump's contentious relationship with the news media also led him to become the first president to skip the annual White House Correspondents' Dinner in decades (Ronald Reagan did not attend in 1981 because he was recovering from being shot in an assassination attempt, but he still called in and delivered a couple one-liners). Trump didn't attend the dinner in 2017 or 2018.

But media figures whose coverage the president finds more friendly will still be able to find some holiday cheer in the White House this year.

Fox News reported that the White House will still host a "full panoply of other parties this holiday season" (indeed, the president two receptions are scheduled for And "selected media people generally favorable to Trump, including a few Fox News hosts, have made those guest lists" for some of those events, Fox reported.

Fox also said, "Trump supporters who view his coverage as unfairly harsh will undoubtedly welcome the president’s decision to exclude the media establishment, at least for this year."

But for any who are worried that the press won't be celebrating at the White House at all this year, never fear: a holiday party – albeit it a much less extravagant one – will still be held this week in the White House press room.

Some members of the news media took to Twitter to express their disappointment in the break from the decades-long tradition.

Contributing: David Jackson

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: President Trump won't host White House Christmas party for press this year