Strange Things About Barron And Melania Trump's Relationship

At the beginning of President-elect Donald Trump's first presidential term, First Lady Melania Trump stayed in Manhattan with the couple's only son, Barron Trump, enabling him to finish out his school term on the Upper West Side. It was an early sign of her fiercely protective approach to raising her only child. Though Melania Trump was unusually private in her First Lady role, she occasionally broke her silence to defend Barron from political attacks.

"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," she posted on X, then Twitter, after Karlan invoked Barron Trump's name during a 2020 impeachment inquiry.

Melania Trump's fiery defense of her son is part of her almost obsessive dedication to protecting and supporting him. "Barron has always been a first priority in her life," an insider source told People. Indeed, Melania Trump has proved to be remarkably involved with her only son, working hard to preserve some kind of normal for the youngest child of one of the modern era's most notorious and colorful figures.

An insider source told the New York Post that Melania Trump is likely to be more hands-off than ever during her second turn as first lady, saying: "Melania will be a part-time first lady — while being a full-time mother and wife." The source explained that Melania Trump intends to spend much of her time at Trump Tower in Manhattan, where she'll reside with Barron Trump for his freshman year at New York University, "so she can be the hands-on mother to Barron that she is."

It won't be the first time Melania Trump has forgone time in D.C. for her son, though this instance is more surprising, as the beginning of college typically marks a new era of separation and independence for children on the cusp of adulthood. Still, it appears that Barron Trump is bringing his Secret Service detail and first lady mother to college with him. The decision is indicative of a tight bond between mother and son, as well as reflective of the immense value Melania Trump places on family. The jury's still out on whether she'll accompany him to any dorm room keggers.

In March 2024, a photo circulated on Reddit depicting a then nine-year-old Barron Trump straddling his mother on the couch to take her picture. The unusual portrait, which features Melania Trump's hands on her son's thighs, was so unusual and potentially suggestive that it immediately sparked rumors the photo had been created with AI. In August 2024, Yahoo! confirmed the photo was authentic.

The pose, unusually intimate for a mother-son portrait, provoked a flurry of horrified replies on social media. "Are we not going to talk about how creepy this pose is? The way he's sitting on her thighs, her hands resting on his thighs," wrote one X user.

The photo was originally taken as part of a series in Trump Tower, which depicted Barron Trump using a FUJIFILM Instax Mini 90 to photograph his mother. Melania Trump was formerly a high fashion model, and the complete photo series contains a variety of poses that make more sense within that context — even if they're icking out the fashion ignorati.

Melania Trump has devoted most of her time and energy to closely mothering her son, even beyond the age when many American children might be considered in need of such hands-on parenting. And, in addition to a hyper-attentive mother, Barron Trump has benefited from the institutional support of a world-class education and the material resources of the über-rich. It's clear that Melania Trump has been eager to call in whatever additional support she can — including bringing her parents to Mar-a-Lago to help raise the then-teenager.

An insider source told People that Melania Trump's parents are "close to Barron and have been instrumental in his raising." It's apparent that the former model has always deeply prioritized family, so it's unsurprising that she's ensured Barron Trump is close with his grandparents. Still, her intense focus on her son seems to go further than helicopter parenting.

Perhaps the clearest sign of Melania Trump's tight bond with her only son Barron is the way the pair regularly converse in her native language, Slovenian. Though Melania Trump is rumored to be fluent in five languages and Barron Trump is fluent in at least two, the pair often default to Slovenian — sometimes to the great annoyance of President-elect Donald Trump, who doesn't understand what they're saying.

The habit suggests that Melania Trump is raising Barron Trump with a strong connection to his heritage and that the two are exceptionally close, even within the broader ecosystem of the Trump family. In 2020, during an interview with CBS News, Mary Jordan, author of "The Art of Her Deal," explained: "There's a unit within the family unit, and it's Melania, her mother, her father, and Barron."

The frequent conversations, particularly when they come at the expense of her husband, are more odd given that Melania Trump has been clear on her feelings about the importance of speaking English. "My opinion is that more languages [sic] you speak, better it is [sic], but when you come to America, you speak English," she told People.

In moments of scandal, including the revelation of hush money that Donald Trump paid to porn star Stormy Daniels, Melania Trump has reiterated her desire to stay away from politics and focused on Barron Trump. So it's hardly surprising that she would rather not see him follow in his father's political footsteps. In 2024, Barron was invited to participate in the Republican National Convention as a Florida delegate, but his mom declined the invitation. According to Newsweek, a spokeswoman for Melania Trump said, "While Barron is honored to have been chosen as a delegate by the Florida Republican Party, he regretfully declines to participate due to prior commitments." The decision is not a surprise to officials close to Melania Trump.

"Barron's involvement in the Trump political arena is one that I know he and Melania stayed away from for many reasons," explained Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, former senior advisor to Melania Trump, in an interview with "The MeidasTouch Podcast." The decision has left some speculating about Barron Trump's political views — though its just as likely the choice was influenced by Melania Trump's protective and private ways. While there aren't many 18-year-olds whose social calendar is still being managed by their mom, it seems clear that Melania Trump would prefer to guide her son toward lower-profile successes.