Unite or spite? Christmas messages from Biden,Trump

The outgoing and incoming US presidents had different messages for Christmas, with Democrat Joe Biden urging Americans to reflect and unite and Republican Donald Trump offering a holiday greeting and a flurry of pointed social media posts.

Biden narrated a video tour of the White House Christmas decorations that was published on YouTube late on Christmas Eve, in which he urges Americans to set aside "all the noise and everything that divides us."

"We're here on this Earth to care for one another, to love one another," Biden says in a voiceover as a camera pans past adorned evergreen trees and bedecked fireplaces inside the White House. "Too often we see each other as enemies, not as neighbours, not as fellow Americans," he said.

Biden urged Americans to find a moment of "quiet reflection" to remind themselves to treat each other with dignity and respect, "live in the light" and remember there was more to unite than divide Americans. "We're truly blessed to live in this nation," he said.

Trump published a mid-morning "Merry Christmas" message on Truth Social on Christmas Day with a photo of himself and his wife Melania, followed by over two dozen retweets of articles or other social media posts that backed his political positions on topics including controversial Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth and his pursuit of Greenland and the Panama Canal.

One was a mocking meme of Barack Obama that shows a photo of the 44th President and Trump at the 2017 inauguration with the message "When you see the guy who said 'you'll never be president' at your inauguration."

Biden took office in 2021 vowing to "end this uncivil war that pits red against blue, rural versus urban, conservative versus liberal," and said he bowed out of the 2024 presidential race in July to unite the country.

By some measures, polarisation in the country has increased instead, including during the 2024 campaign that saw Biden up against Trump, again, before Democrat Kamala Harris took over.

Trump has called for the prosecution of perceived political enemies and vowed to restructure the federal government.