As the old cliche goes, “Birds of a feather flock together.” This seems to be true for children of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue—aka the White House. Despite their families disagreeing politically, Chelsea Clinton has taken to Twitter to defend the youngest Trump, according to US News, after a conservative site berated him.
Late Monday, The Daily Caller, a conservative news site, published an op-ed regarding Barron Trump’s attire. The 11-year-old, as writer Ford Springer saw it, was not dressing well enough for a First Kid. “It’s High Time Barron Trump Starts Dressing Like He’s In the White House,” read the headline. The outfit that prompted the Fashion Police citation? A graphic t-shirt, khaki shorts and loafers Barron wore on Air Force One, or you know, stuff normal 11-year-olds wear during the summer. Springer skewered the outfit, saying “Young Barron looked like he was hopping on Air Force One for a trip to the movie theatre.” The article added that while Barron isn’t obligated to do anything as the president’s son, “The least he could do is dress the part when he steps out in public.” The argument immediately set off a firestorm.
Chelsea Clinton swiftly denounced the article, telling the writer to back off from a literal child. The daughter of a former president and a former secretary of state, Chelsea is far from apolitical—she frequently tweets at and about Trump—but it’s clear she has her boundaries when it comes to attacking the child of a poltician.
It’s high time the media & everyone leave Barron Trump alone & let him have the private childhood he deserves https://t.co/Wxq51TvgDX
— Chelsea Clinton (@ChelseaClinton) August 21, 2017
Others of all political backgrounds came to Barron’s defense, stressing the minor’s age and the protections children should get, no matter how high-profile their family may be.
Just a quick statement
I have a young son & I’m a firm believer that Barron Trump is off limits
He didn’t choose this, leave him out of it
— Red T Raccoon (@RedTRaccoon) August 22, 2017
Whatever your political views, I feel like everyone decent has some sympathy for Barron Trump. What a situation for an 11-year-old boy.
— Niall Stanage (@NiallStanage) August 21, 2017
Hey @Ford_Springer why the hell do you care what an 11-year-old boy wears? How is it your business? https://t.co/ta2sFhM7Fp
— Yashar Ali (@yashar) August 21, 2017
Chelsea’s defended Barron before. Back in January, Clinton took on an SNL writer who joked about Barron, according to The Washington Post. The writer was suspended. Clinton later wrote a longer post about the issue on Facebook, stating that Barron is a child and should be treated like one.
Children of the White House have been subjected to a lot of criticism, particularly appearance-based criticism. During her father’s time in White House, Chelsea Clinton was often criticized in the media for being ‘homely.’ She was only a few years older than Barron at the time. Malia and Sasha Obama were once called classless by a GOP aide for wearing miniskirts to a turkey pardoning. The aide later apologized for the remark and subsequently resigned from her position.Â
Chelsea’s message is clear:Â No matter the politics or the president, making fun of their children will always be off-limits.Â