Jill Biden delivers cookies baked by White House staff to National Guard in D.C.

First lady Dr. Jill Biden delivered cookies to members of the National Guard in Washington, D.C., on Friday to thank them for their service in protecting the first family.

Biden made an unannounced trip to the Capitol with chocolate chip cookies made by White House staff to thank the National Guard “for keeping me and my family safe” during President Joe Biden’s inauguration.

“I just want to say thank you from President Biden and the whole, the entire Biden family,” Biden said.

“The White House baked you some chocolate chip cookies,” the first lady said, joking that she hadn’t made the treats herself.

Biden told the group that her late stepson, Beau Biden, had served in the National Guard. The president has frequently spoken about Beau in emotional remarks.

“So I’m a National Guard mom,” Biden said.

She said the baskets for cookies were a “small thank you”.

“I truly appreciate all that you do,” Biden said. “The National Guard will always hold a special place in the heart of all the Bidens.”

The president thanked the chief of the National Guard Bureau over the phone on Friday. More than 25,000 members of the National Guard were deployed to D.C. following the deadly riot at the Capitol on January 6 that left five people dead, including a police officer.

The first lady’s surprise visit to the troops came after her first official public trip. Biden visited Whitman-Walker Health, a clinic that provides cancer services and has a history of treating HIV/AIDs patients as well as the LGBTQ community.

During her visit, issues surrounding cancer screenings, the use of online doctors’ appointments and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic were highlighted.

“We just have to work together and address some of these things,” Biden said at the clinic. “The first thing we have to do is address this pandemic and get everybody vaccinated and back to work and back to their schools and get things back to the new normal.”

There has been recent controversy surrounding the treatment of the National Guard troops at the Capitol. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle expressed frustration after some troops were reportedly moved to a parking garage.

“Yeah this is not okay. My office is free this week to any service members who’d like to use it for a break or take nap on the couch. We’ll stock up on snacks for you all too,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted on Thursday. The same sentiment was expressed by a large number of her colleagues.