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Podcasts Take Two
White House revives Big Block of Cheese Day for 2nd year
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Jan 21, 2015
Listen • 6:20
White House revives Big Block of Cheese Day for 2nd year
With the help of 'The West Wing' cast, President Barack Obama brought back an event from the Jackson Presidency in the form of an online town hall.
In 1837, President Jackson had a 1,400-pound block of cheese brought into the White House for an event where he and his staff met with thousands of citizens to talk about the issues of the day. President Obama has brought the spirit of this event back in an effort called Big Block of Cheese Day.
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Courtesy of whitehouse.gov
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With the help of 'The West Wing' cast, President Barack Obama brought back an event from the Jackson Presidency in the form of an online town hall.

White House officials took questions Wednesday from all across the nation via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Tumblr on the heels of the State of the Union address. It's an effort called Big Block of Cheese Day, which was inspired by an event that took place at the White House back in 1837 that involved a lot of cheese.  

On February 22, President Andrew Jackson hosted an open house in the main foyer of the White House where his staff and thousands of citizens feasted on a 1,400-pound block of cheese while they discussed the issues of the day. 

NBC's political drama, "The West Wing," paid tribute to President Jackson's act of populism in its first season. 

Obama has turned the event into a tradition. Back for the second year in a row, "The West Wing" cast reunited to help promote the online town hall. 

Video: 2nd annual Big Block of Cheese Day West Wing promo

Lindsey Tepe, policy analyst with the New America Foundation, tells more about the event.