From Roll Call

84-foot-tall spruce makes the trip from Idaho

Another tree has made the journey to grace the lawn of the United States Capitol. The traditional Capitol Christmas tree, all the way from the Payette National Forest in Idaho, has arrived.

Escorted by Capitol Police, the 84-foot-tall, 84-year-old Engelmann spruce rode on a big red truck labeled “From tree to shining tree.”

“I’d like to thank, first, the Idaho delegation for this terrific support in securing this beautiful tree,” Architect of the Capitol Stephen T. Ayers said upon accepting the tree at a news conference in front of the West Lawn, where the tree will stand.

The tree was harvested on Nov. 2, and made stops in communities along its 2,500-mile route from Idaho to Washington, D.C.

“Team members engaged in random acts of kindness along the trip … in an effort to #payitforward,” Ayers said.

While Capitol workers were untying the tree to get it off the truck, a few branches fell off the bottom…. read more here