Jimmy Carter was the first president who officially recognized Hanukkah, when in 1979 he walked from the White House to Lafayette Park to deliver brief remarks as he lit the new National Menorah erected by the Jewish group, Chabad-Lubavitch.
Based on his sensitivity to Hanukkah, his next annual Christmas message was carefully worded, with greetings "to those of our fellow citizens who join us in the joyous celebration of Christmas".
Since then, every president has participated in a menorah-lighting ceremony to recognize Hanukkah, and directed the Christmas message to those citizens who celebrate that holiday.
Joshua Eli Plaut's book A Kosher Christmas: 'Tis the Season to Be Jewish," (Rutgers University Press, 2012) cites  President Jimmy Carter's daily diary entry detailing his lighting of the shamash candle on the menorah in the presence of the Chabad Rabbi.
See www.akosherchristmas.org
In 1983, President Ronald Reagan visited the Rockville, Maryland Jewish Community Center and offered remarks after the Hanukkah menorah was lit, and in 1984, on the eve of Hanukkah, he hosted a visit to the White House by a delegation of rabbis from the Orthodox Jewish organization, American Friends of Lubavitch.
The group later recounted that they were surprised that, when the time had come for them to depart, President Reagan invited them to remain a little longer so that he could tell them a story about a rabbi serving as a Navy chaplain.
He recounted the story of Rabbi Arnold Resnicoff, whose kippa (skullcap) had to be discarded after the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing because it was covered in blood after being used to wipe the faces of wounded Marines; whereupon a Catholic chaplain, Fr.
George Pucciarelli, tore a piece of his camouflage uniform off, to be used as a temporary replacement for the kippa.
Reagan thanked the group in an official February 12, 1985, White House letter to Rabbi Abraham Shemtov, the organization's national director, ending with the prayer: "May the light of the menorah always be a source of strength and inspiration to the Jewish people and to all mankind".
Reagan also began to use the term "Judeo-Christian heritage" more and more during his presidency, and in a radio address on December 26, 1987, spoke of the link of both Hanukkah and Christmas "as two religious observances that go to the heart of America's Judeo-Christian heritage".

Later, President George H.W. Bush would "proudly display" the menorah he received as a gift from the Synagogue Council of America, a group representing the major denominations and movements of American Judaism.
He also attended a Hanukkah party for staff in the Executive Office Building, in 1991.

Gifts aside, it was not until the administration of President Bill Clinton that a president actually hosted a menorah-lighting ceremony in the White House.
In 1993, he gathered a dozen or so school children for a ceremony in the Oval Office.
The event made the news because the ponytail on one of the girls, 6-year-old Ilana Kattan, briefly started smoking when it touched one of the flames from the candles – but Clinton used his hands to "snuff out" the smoke.
Clinton also joined Israeli president Ezer Weizman for a Hanukkah candle-lighting ceremony in Jerusalem, December 13, 1998.

Under Clinton, some Jewish leaders were among the guests at the White House Hanukkah menorah lightings.
In 1996, during his administration, the first United States postage stamp honoring Hanukkah was issued, and was the first stamp to be a joint-issue between the United States and Israel.
Jimmy Carter was the first president who officially recognized Hanukkah, when in 1979 he walked from the White House to Lafayette Park to deliver brief remarks as he lit the new National Menorah erected by the Jewish group, Chabad-Lubavitch. Based on his sensitivity to Hanukkah, his next annual Christmas message was carefully worded, with greetings "to those of our fellow citizens who join us in the joyous celebration of Christmas". Since then, every president has participated in a menorah-lighting ceremony to recognize Hanukkah, and directed the Christmas message to those citizens who celebrate that holiday. Joshua Eli Plaut's book A Kosher Christmas: 'Tis the Season to Be Jewish," (Rutgers University Press, 2012) cites  President Jimmy Carter's daily diary entry detailing his lighting of the shamash candle on the menorah in the presence of the Chabad Rabbi. See www.akosherchristmas.org
In 1983, President Ronald Reagan visited the Rockville, Maryland Jewish Community Center and offered remarks after the Hanukkah menorah was lit, and in 1984, on the eve of Hanukkah, he hosted a visit to the White House by a delegation of rabbis from the Orthodox Jewish organization, American Friends of Lubavitch. The group later recounted that they were surprised that, when the time had come for them to depart, President Reagan invited them to remain a little longer so that he could tell them a story about a rabbi serving as a Navy chaplain. He recounted the story of Rabbi Arnold Resnicoff, whose kippa (skullcap) had to be discarded after the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing because it was covered in blood after being used to wipe the faces of wounded Marines; whereupon a Catholic chaplain, Fr. George Pucciarelli, tore a piece of his camouflage uniform off, to be used as a temporary replacement for the kippa. Reagan thanked the group in an official February 12, 1985, White House letter to Rabbi Abraham Shemtov, the organization's national director, ending with the prayer: "May the light of the menorah always be a source of strength and inspiration to the Jewish people and to all mankind". Reagan also began to use the term "Judeo-Christian heritage" more and more during his presidency, and in a radio address on December 26, 1987, spoke of the link of both Hanukkah and Christmas "as two religious observances that go to the heart of America's Judeo-Christian heritage".
Later, President George H.W. Bush would "proudly display" the menorah he received as a gift from the Synagogue Council of America, a group representing the major denominations and movements of American Judaism. He also attended a Hanukkah party for staff in the Executive Office Building, in 1991.
Gifts aside, it was not until the administration of President Bill Clinton that a president actually hosted a menorah-lighting ceremony in the White House. In 1993, he gathered a dozen or so school children for a ceremony in the Oval Office. The event made the news because the ponytail on one of the girls, 6-year-old Ilana Kattan, briefly started smoking when it touched one of the flames from the candles – but Clinton used his hands to "snuff out" the smoke. Clinton also joined Israeli president Ezer Weizman for a Hanukkah candle-lighting ceremony in Jerusalem, December 13, 1998.
Under Clinton, some Jewish leaders were among the guests at the White House Hanukkah menorah lightings. In 1996, during his administration, the first United States postage stamp honoring Hanukkah was issued, and was the first stamp to be a joint-issue between the United States and Israel.
White House Hanukkah Party