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And, if nothing else, the exchange marks a reversal of the awkwardness that ensued in 2009 when British Prime Minister Gordon Brown gave President Barack Obama a penholder made from the timbers of the same ship whose wood was used to build the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office.—BostonGlobe.com, 12 June 2021 The six-month journal features a sturdy leather cover and comes equipped with an elastic penholder, a closure band, bookmarks, a pocket for notes, and organizational stickers.—Emily Belfiore, Health.com, 7 Jan. 2022 What better way to keep organized than with a device the combines a desk fan, a small desk light, a penholder, and a smartphone stand?—Popular Science, 29 June 2020 The president was fresh off another British gift gaffe with Prime Minister Gordon Brown, after Brown gave him a penholder carved from the wood of an anti-slave ship, and in return, Obama gave him DVD box sets.—Elise Taylor, Vogue, 22 Sep. 2017
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