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Barron Trump: A Quiet Presence in a Highly Controversial Family

Barron Trump, who at 18 years old has largely managed to stay out of the public eye, made his TV debut at just two months old when his parents, convinced felon and twice-impeached former president Donald Trump and failed supermodel Melenia, invited Gayle King to their $100 million Trump Tower penthouse. Cameras captured Barron’s grand nursery, a corner room with Manhattan views filled with large soft toys. The bankrupt business tycoon, who would one day be mocked over the small size of his own hands, held his son and said, “See the little delicate hands.” When King asked if Donald had ever changed a diaper, he claimed he knew how to, but that he never needed to do so. Barron’s wailing soon prompted Donald to pass him back to Melania.

Fast forward to the present and, Barron, now 6’7, towers over his 6’3 father but remains closely tied to his mother. Today marks his coming of age, following a high-profile childhood marked by physical pampering but emotional challenges due to his father’s polarizing nature. Barron, the first boy to grow up in the White House since JFK’s son “John John” in 1963, has endured his family’s numerous scandals, but his protective mother has shielded him as much as possible.

In January 2018, when Barron was nearly 12, the media was engulfed by Stormy Daniels’s claims of an affair with Donald Trump just months after Barron’s birth. During Trump’s presidency, critics sometimes targeted Barron to attack his father. For instance, comedian Rosie O’Donnell (who had reason to hold a grudge against Donald, who had once called her a “pig”) shared an unfounded video suggesting Barron had autism, later apologizing to Melania. Saturday Night Live writer Katie Rich tweeted an offensive joke about Barron, leading to widespread condemnation.