What Barron Trump's Life Has Been Like Growing Up With Famous Parents

Former President Donald Trump and his large family have been in the spotlight now for decades, first as well-to-do New Yorkers about town and later as a brief but well-noted political dynasty. Following his time in the White House, Donald and his brood flew south and set up compounds in Florida. He and his wife, Melania, live at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, along with their son, Barron.

Meanwhile, Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, bought a property in Indian Creek, a small island outside of Miami nicknamed "Billionaire Bunker." And while they have everything they could want, it hasn't been an easy transition for the two since they left the White House, per Washingtonian. Still, other Trumps followed suit. Donald Trump Jr. and Kimberly Guilfoyle moved to Jupiter, Florida, as The Palm Beach Post notes, into a $9.7 million home located only half an hour away from Donald Trump's resort. Eric Trump and his family bought a nearby home in Jupiter for $3.2 million, per KIRO7. Even Tiffany Trump and her husband, Michael Boulos, moved to Miami, People reported.

But while the elder Trump kids continue to attract media attention after leaving Washington, D.C., it's the former president's youngest child, Barron, who's really stealing the show now. He might be the family baby, but he's by no means the smallest. Barron is nearly unrecognizable after growing up in the White House and has been a much more sympathetic character in the media than other members of the family.

Barron Trump was baptized in the same church where his parents, Donald and Melania Trump, got married the year before. He received the sacrament on December 8, 2006, in Palm Beach, Florida, at the Episcopal Church of Bethesda-by-the-Sea, according to Episcopal News Service. Melania's parents and sister were present, as were Donald's children and "five bodyguards," according to People.

Donald himself is Presbyterian, according to The Washington Post. Interestingly, Melania's religious beliefs were unknown for much of her public life, but after her visit to the Vatican in 2017, where she and Donald met with Pope Francis, the world discovered that she is Catholic. In fact, during the visit, the pope blessed her rosary, a set of beads Catholics use to say a devotional prayer. She was dressed entirely in black and wore a black veil for the visit. While extremely private about her faith, this wasn't the first time that Melania's life was influenced by her Catholic background. Although her wedding was held in an Episcopal church, she walked down the aisle to the song "Ave Maria" while holding a rosary.

While Barron's baptism was also in the Episcopal church, it's unclear how much of his upbringing was shaped by either parents' religion. For Melania, though, it's evident that religion is deeply significant to her. After the papal visit, she said on Twitter that it was "one I'll never forget."

Barron Trump's access to the finer things goes beyond even what we might expect of a child born to a real estate mogul. Comedian Ellen DeGeneres gifted baby Barron a golden stroller that came with a little chandelier that dangled above it, People notes. While the gift might be a bit garish according to some folks' taste, Melania found it amusing. "It's fun," she said of the golden gift. "It makes you laugh." Sure thing, Melania. 

Barbara Walters sent him a massive stuffed dog, per a later publication by People, and he was gifted with onesies sporting the catchphrase made famous by Donald Trump's reality show, "The Apprentice": "You're fired!" When Barron was a little older and had begun speaking, Melania and Donald appeared on CNN with Larry King, who asked if Barron had fired anyone. Melania joked (we hope), "He did, yes, actually he did. He's firing the housekeeper and nanny many times."

Barron's living arrangements as a baby were an education in lavishness. He grew up in the Trump apartment on 5th Avenue in New York City, and his quarters were on the "floor above his parents' bedroom," according to People. This space came "with nursery, kitchen, living room and quarters for a nanny," as well as some for mom. If the Trumps were worried about baby noises waking them up, there was no need. "He's a very good baby," Melania said of her son. "He's not like a crybaby — he's calm, and it's fantastic." An entire floor in Manhattan ain't too shabby for a baby.

While Donald Trump's famous confession that he never changed Barron Trump's diaper when he was a baby might not compare to a lot of people's parenting experiences, Donald did stress that he liked a hands-on dad approach in other ways. "I love to feed the baby," he told People in 2006. "Not because I have to, but just because I love it. A lot of times early in the morning I'll take care of him." Donald explained that he doesn't sleep for long anyway, so it's not a problem. "Over the years I have changed a diaper, but not on Barron," he added. Melania's response was, "That's my job." While he might not be on diaper duty, it's clear that Donald loves being a father. "Melania loves taking care of the baby," he explained to People. "If we have more, it will be terrific."

As Barron grew up, he became the typical reticent teenager, something that came up when Donald was the president. Author Jonathan Karl described an experience in his book, "Betrayal: The Final Act of the Trump Show," where Donald spoke to reporter Zeke Miller about Karl himself. Karl quoted Donald as saying, "Jonathan is very cool ... He is like my son.'" Donald then pretended to speak with his son: "'Do you love your dad?' 'Uh, I don't know.' But he does. He's too cool. The kids." So we've got a hunch that Barron might be the shy type, at least with his dad.

Barron Trump's arrival at the White House was a novel experience in terms of presidential families. Prior presidents had children living in the White House, but the last few underage occupants were daughters. To find a previous first son who resided there as a child, one has to go all the way back to John F. Kennedy's presidency, Town & Country notes, to land on John F. Kennedy Jr.

While Barron certainly got a unique adolescence thanks to his dad's political aspirations, it doesn't look like it was always an easy experience being a kid in the White House. In 2017, when Kathy Griffin created an image of herself holding a severed head of Donald Trump, Barron found the visual traumatizing and understandably so. He was only 11 at the time, TMZ notes, and allegedly was deeply agitated by the photo. Trump shot back with a tweet: "Kathy Griffin should be ashamed of herself. My children, especially my 11 year old son, Barron, are having a hard time with this. Sick" (via TMZ).

In the same year, a writer for "Saturday Night Live," Katie Rich, tweeted, "Barron will be this country's first homeschool shooter" (via Business Insider). This tweet was also met with outrage, both by the White House and those outside of politics. Chelsea Clinton, the daughter of Donald's political rival Hillary Clinton, jumped on Twitter to defend the president's son, writing, "Barron Trump deserves the chance every child does — to be a kid." 

So what did Barron Trump think about Donald Trump's political life? The young boy was frequently out of the spotlight and obviously never gave interviews, but enough evidence came forward to show that Barron found his dad to be too hard in some moments.

In Donald's debates with President Joe Biden, Barron, who was 14 at the time, felt that his father was too bombastic. "People thought I was too belligerent," Donald said, according to Mollie Hemingway's book "Rigged: How the Media, Big Tech, and the Democrats Seized Our Elections." "I will say my own son Barron said, 'Dad, you were too tough. You didn't have to keep interrupting him,'" he added.

In fact, as Politico notes, Donald's children, as well as Melania Trump herself, urged him to present a more "presidential" persona ahead of the 2016 election, so as to appear more palatable to the American voter. Trump's older children famously appeared alongside him, both on the campaign trail and in the White House, but Barron stayed out of the spotlight and away from the microphone on account of how young he was. Body language expert Bruce Durham spoke with the Mirror about the information he could glean from photographs of Barron and his parents at political events. "I think it is quite sad and sweet that Barron is looking at the floor in both photos," Durham said. "It must be hard for any young adult to be in that position." Clearly, Barron wasn't comfortable with so much attention.

Part of the protection of Donald Trump's youngest son has been to keep him out of the public eye as much as possible, but Barron Trump's notable absence from major events during his father's presidency raised some questions. Barron was not with his parents when they left the White House on their last day, People notes. In addition, he was nowhere to be found when Donald issued his final address as president at Joint Base Andrews, while Trump's other children, as well as Melania Trump, were there to witness it, the Daily Mail reports. Meanwhile, Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner brought their children, and many of Donald's other grandchildren were present for the send-off.

Although the situation sparked endless "Home Alone" jokes on Twitter, there might be a more serious reason for Barron's absence from these final public events. During Donald's impeachment inquiry, Professor Pamela Karlan, who teaches at Stanford University, made reference to his inappropriate uses of power and said that "the president can name his son Barron, he can't make him a baron," according to Fox Business.

Obviously, mama bear Melania was all over this and snapped back on Twitter: "A minor child deserves privacy and should be kept out of politics. Pamela Karlan, you should be ashamed of your very angry and obviously biased public pandering, and using a child to do it." Others from both parties were against the comment, and it seems like a plausible connection that following Karlan's remark, Barron was kept away from the public.

Height might be an odd thing to make headlines for, but Barron Trump went viral when he visited New York City in July 2021, and the groundbreaking news was that he got huge. He's a whopping 6 foot 7 inches, according to the New York Post. He and Melania Trump were photographed leaving Trump Tower, and the comparison of Barron next to his mother, who is 5-foot-11, was striking. Donald Trump is 6-foot-3. Barron now towers over all of Donald's older children, so they can't quite call him the baby of the family anymore.

The details of the sighting of Barron and Melania together were every bit as luxurious as we've come to expect from the family. Barron was carrying his mother's Louis Vuitton x Richard Prince bag, which cost an estimated $3,995, according to the Daily Mail, while Melania carried an $11,000 Birkin bag.

The Uber Facts Twitter account was all over the news and pointed out that Barron is "over a foot taller than the average 15-year-old." While some people were signing Barron up for the NBA, others followed the ongoing request to keep someone so young out of the spotlight. "Maybe don't post pictures of underage kids, no matter who their parents are?" one Twitter user commented. The factoid is a talking point for Trump himself, though, who mentioned Barron's height at the North Carolina GOP convention in the summer of 2021, per the New York Post. Clearly, he's come a long way from the little boy in the golden stroller.

Barron Trump is turned 18 in 2024, but he will always be mommy's little boy. Speaking to People in March 2023, an insider described Melania Trump as a doting mother, revealing that the former first lady remained focused on Barron amid Donald Trump's legal drama. "Barron has always been a first priority in [Melania's] life," the source explained. "Of course, she is worried and concerned about the legal issues but she has not done anything more to protect Barron now than she ever did. She has always put him first. She is a good mother."

This comment reinforces a previous claim by Bruce Durham, a body language expert who, in 2020, told Express that despite what was often expected of him as the president's son, Melania made sure to always look out for Barron. "She knows he has a role there, what he needs to do, but also how to look after her only son with a mothering parent-child set up. She cares more about her son." Despite her ever-lingering protection, however, the former first lady is reportedly also happy to allow Barron to wield some control. "His mother sees this and is happy enough to let him grow into this moment," Durham said, referencing moments where the young Trump exuded independence.