President Donald Trump on Friday bizarrely took credit for bringing back the use of the phrase “Merry Christmas” during a campaign rally in Wisconsin. The comments were not in response to any recent controversy or media talking point.

"You remember I used to say, we're gonna bring back the words, 'Merry Christmas.' We did, right? Those big department stores, they liked 'Happy New Year,' I said, no, you can say them both. But you can't do one without the other. 'Merry Christmas' is back,” Trump told rally goers in Green Bay.

During his 2016 campaign, Trump said he would force Americans to say “Merry Christmas.” He chided the use of the phrase “Happy Holidays,” saying “you can leave that over in the corner."

Conservatives have frequently derided the use of the phrase “Happy Holidays,” which some believe is a form of political correctness. A 2005 book by radio host John Gibson, “The War on Christmas: How the Liberal Plot to Ban the Sacred Christian Holiday Is Worse Than You Thought,” accused progressives of wanting to tear down all symbols of Christmas from public spaces.

Former Fox News host Bill O’ Reilly often spoke out about “The War on Christmas” on his nightly program, "The O’Reilly Factor." O’Reilly, who has since left Fox News, once accused liberals of wanting “a new America, and traditional Christmas isn’t a part of it.”

The comments from Trump come after first lady Melania Trump drew attention in early October for her past comments about the holiday. “Who gives a f--- about the Christmas stuff and decorations?” Melania Trump told former adviser Stephanie Winston Wolkoff in a private recording.

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