Listen, holiday parties can be a drag. Hanging out with co-workers who you spent the whole year avoiding, too much booze, not enough passed apps. This year the Washington press corps will not have to endure another one of these because the White House will not be hosting its annual press Christmas party. Howard Kurtz, Fox News pundit, broke the news, and declared, “The White House made no announcement that it was dropping the press party.”

When asked, the White House said, with a stunning show of passive language, “The White House Christmas press party was not put on the holiday schedule this year,” though members of the press can secure a tour of the place if they’d like.

The annual gathering usually involves a long line for a handshaking and a photo op in front of the Christmas tree, plus a buffet. The New York Times reported in 2015, when Trump’s candidacy was but a twinkle in Beelzebub’s eye, how awkward the whole thing can be, what with journos trying to get a word in while enjoying the slightly less formal setting. The president had been beating the “press is the enemy of the people” drum before last year’s event with the fervor of a despot, which made things even more awkward. Last year, the party was moved from its nighttime start to 2:00 P.M. which any social bon vivant worth their weight in calling cards knows is a slight. CNN skipped last year. Breitbart did not. Trump skipped the photo op part then, and now? Nothing.

In the end, it is something he didn’t want to do, and it’s probably a relief for many D.C. journalists who won’t have to make the decision whether or not to celebrate the holidays with the man turning their day job into an act of unpatriotic villainy. Now they will have more time to report, and he will have more time for the stuff he actually likes to do. Like tweeting. Watching just the action parts of Under Siege. Eating chips. Fuming. Texting with Jeanine Pirro. Golfing. Wedge issues. Wedge salads. Church? Haha, no, but certainly television.