Welcome to POLITICO’s West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration. With Allie Bice. Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Alex | Email Tina First lady JILL BIDEN played an active role in choosing the gifts given to two of the most high-profile officials the Bidens have met with so far this year: POPE FRANCIS and QUEEN ELIZABETH. It’s something she’s had some practice with, having been actively involved in the vice president’s gift giving when she was second lady, according to a former chief of the State Department’s Office of Protocol. The art of gifting among foreign dignitaries is no trifling affair. It’s a high-profile diplomatic overture, one that offers a way for leaders to immediately connect. It’s also scrutinized closely by the media in both countries. If done poorly, it can become something of an embarrassment, like when BARACK OBAMA gave then-U.K. Prime Minister GORDON BROWN a 25-set DVD collection in 2009. “It’s the thought that counts,” mused the Guardian. The protocol office at Foggy Bottom takes primary responsibility for selecting the gifts. But a U.S. official familiar with the current gift giving process told West Wing Playbook that Jill Biden “is involved when it is a gift from her,” though she and her husband are presented with options from the protocol office when there is a joint gift from both of their offices. The gifts are meticulously selected and thought out, as is evident in the gift memo for Queen Elizabeth, according to a document reviewed by POLITICO. During their visit to Windsor Castle on June 13, the first couple gave the Queen a hand-painted brooch commissioned by the Eagle Pen Company of Charlottesville, Virginia. It featured a floral-pattern designed by American miniature artist LYNN PONTO-PETERSON of Arkansas. Part of the brooch was made from a piece of wood from a fallen magnolia tree from the South Lawn of the White House. It took 40 hours to design the piece, the document says. The brooch was presented in a chest designed by Tiffany & Co, featuring a hand-engraved landscape of Windsor Castle, a Washington D.C. rose, the Pennsylvania laurel to represent Biden’s home state and a California poppy to represent Vice President KAMALA HARRIS’ home state, the document said. For Pope Francis, the White House team asked officials at the Bidens’ Washington church, Holy Trinity Catholic Church, for historical material that could be made into a diplomatic gift. The church presented them with three options. Ultimately the president and first lady decided on a chasuble made in Rome by Gammarelli, a sixth-generation tailor shop that has outfitted the pope since the late 1700s. The vestment was framed in wood that was made from trees from the White House ground and marble salvaged from an old baptismal font, according to the church. Biden also gave Francis a challenge coin which included the insignia of the 261st Signal Brigade unit in the Delaware Army National Guard, the unit where BEAU BIDEN served as captain. The State Department and the first lady’s office didn’t elaborate on the gift selection process. But we asked a former protocol chief for more insight into Jill Biden’s role in gift giving. “She is incredibly thoughtful when it comes to gifts, in particular when someone has a child — when she learns that a leader has children she gave exquisite blankets,” said CAPRICIA MARSHALL, the chief of protocol under President Obama and White House social secretary under President BILL CLINTON. “And she was really keen on selecting Delaware artisans because it’s reflective of them and their past and people that they knew.” Marshall said she frequently worked with a key member of “Team Jill” — ANTHONY BERNAL, who remains one of the first lady’s closest advisers. Apparently Bernal is good at gifts too. Marshall said Bernal played a big role in determining what Jill Biden was interested in giving, which at the time was glass and artwork from artisans she knew. “He volunteered their services and their work. I’m sure that they are continuing to do that,” Marshall said. “Having seen that beautiful gift that they gave the Pope, it shows that they really understand the importance of the moment.” Jill Biden’s knack for art was also evident in her gift to her husband on his Inauguration Day: a ROBERT S. DUNCANSON painting called “Landscape with Rainbow,” which she borrowed from the Smithsonian American Art Museum. "I like the rainbow—good things to follow," she told the audience. PROGRAMMING NOTE — We'll be off for Thanksgiving this Thursday and Friday but back to our normal schedule on Monday, Nov. 29. Do you work in the Biden administration? Are you in touch with the White House? Are you TIMOTHY W. MANNING, supply coordinator for Covid-19 response? We want to hear from you — and we’ll keep you anonymous: westwingtips@politico.com. Or if you want to stay really anonymous send us a tip through SecureDrop, Signal, Telegram, or Whatsapp here. Or you can text/Signal Alex at 8183240098. | 
