Dear Barron, less than 48 hours ago your father was officially sworn in as the 45th President of the United States of America.
You followed the footsteps of your older brothers and sisters whom you admire, while walking out onto the front of Capitol Hill to watch the man you grew up with officially become the commander in chief of the most powerful country in the world.
As you looked beside you, you saw President Barack Obama and his wife and First Lady Michelle taking the moment in. Barack had been beyond gracious and pleasant throughout the inauguration proceedings, following through on his promise of a peaceful transition of power. This had to be a surreal moment for them as well, knowing in a mere few moments their lives would never quite be the same again.
I’m sure there was a part of Barack that was relieved, knowing he’d no longer have to take the blame for everyone’s problems, nor would he have to stay up until the late hours of the morning pondering critical foreign affair matters. He could now play golf and pickup basketball without scrutiny, and spend more time with his precious daughters Malia and Sasha.
The other part of him had to be hurting, realizing his past 8 years of work was being handed to someone that saw the country from a very different lens, and would almost assuredly be changing if not throwing out, the majority of his policies and hard work.
If you tilt your head to the right, you’d find the woman your father defeated in the general election to become the 45th President of the United States.
Mrs. Clinton was wearing all white, appearing stoic and outright distraught at times. This was supposed to be her moment. She had even sent out a tweet on her birthday earlier in the year, wishing the “future President of the United States” a happy birthday with an older picture of her beneath the caption. Mrs. Clinton had survived endless hardships with her husband as First Lady, became a senator for eight years, before becoming Obama’s Secretary of State, just for this exact moment…a moment that never came.
Say what you will about Mrs. Clinton-I for one believe she’s a horrendous politician and a disingenuous person, but she showed gumption by showing up to your father’s inauguration because it was the right thing to do, even if it killed her inside, something I can’t say for the 60+ Democrats that boycotted the event. The entire day was a constant reminder of her failure to become President, and she was unable to hide her genuine emotions for once because of it.
Next to the Obama’s, sat Barack’s right hand man Joe Biden. Mr. Biden has endured more personal hardship throughout his life than any of us should have to experience. Biden was likely reflecting on these past eight years, taking solace in how proud his late son would be of him for all he had accomplished as VP. Like Obama and Hillary, Biden was certainly experiencing a mix of emotions.
Your father being sworn in was quite a moment for all of us. For half of the country, it was validation and celebration after many of us were unfairly ridiculed and labeled by friends and family members for supporting your father. For the other half of the country it was bitter disappointment, as they never truly understood the essence of your fathers message nor his character.
As your father began his inauguration speech to roaring ovations, he spoke to his contempt for Washington D.C. and the establishment, his desire to fix the inner city communities and rebuild our infrastructure, and his pledge to put Americans best interests first.
“Whether we are black, or brown, or white, we all bleed the same red blood of patriots” the new commander in chief declared.
Your brothers were in the background beaming with pride, as they had ferociously campaigned and advocated for your father the last 365 days in the face of never ending criticism. Your older sisters were in their element, and perhaps no one exhibited more joy than Ivanka given her close relationship to your dad. Your normally composed mother looked jubilant, as she defended your father’s character every step of the way during this journey, despite her well known disdain for the spotlight.
And then there was you Barron-the youngest child of our newest President. You were standing next to the siblings you adore as you all watched on as your father embarked on his newest challenge.
I’m not entirely sure how a 10 yr old is supposed to react to such a moment-a moment thick skinned, seasoned politicians were struggling with. A moment that I, at 10 years old, wouldn’t even be able to remotely comprehend.
You see Barron, there are members from the party of compassion, tolerance, and inclusion that have deemed it acceptable to critique your behavior, poke fun at your height and walk, and even speculate as to whether you may have Autism or Aspergers.
It’s an unwritten rule that children are off limits when it comes to politics. This should go without saying.
Speculating about a child’s behavior and his mental health, and then drawing conclusions without the proper knowledge on said subject-now that is grossly reprehensible.
The disturbing part is they will justify their behavior by self righteously stating they’re “raising awareness on mental illness” but they’re not. They’re exploiting you, because you’re the easiest target associated with the man they strongly dislike.
There’s no desire to understand your situation, or to be compassionate with what you’re going through. If they were genuinely concerned, there would be no jokes about you becoming a school shooter, having “resting bitch face” or being awkward.
Barack’s daughters, Sasha and Malia were close to your age when their father was sworn into office eight years ago.
Like you, they too were far too young to grasp the enormity of the situation. They also didn’t ask to be put into the spotlight at such a young age and because of this, both were rightfully shielded from criticism.
The thing is Barron, those that oppose your father and misread his message don’t always practice what they preach.
When I was ten years old, I was a foot shorter than you, could barely tie my shoes and struggled to read.
Not only that, but like you, I too was born into a family of strong personalities, which is both a blessing and a curse as I’m sure you know.
I couldn’t go anywhere in public with my dad, where I wouldn’t have to stop to allow him to chat with an old friend or colleague. I had a grandfather that seemingly knew everyone, who possessed a personality eerily similar to your fathers. My cousins were all-American athletes whom I looked up too, my younger brother had the charisma and personality of a 25 yr old comedian by age 5, and nearly all my friends felt the need to remind me they found both of my sisters attractive on a daily basis.
Whenever we had family gatherings, I felt anxious. It was always a competition of who could outdo who, with so many outgoing personalities and success stories. It was overwhelming and made me feel as though I was being boxed in. I wasn’t even naturally shy, or awkward, but around my fellow Scott’s I felt overwhelmed and insignificant, especially at your age.
Now let’s turn the page back to you. You have an older brother who’s created some of the most respected golf courses throughout the country and has raised millions of dollars for St. Jude Children’s research hospital. You have an older sister who’s expanded the Trump hotel brand internationally, owns her own clothing line, and is a well respected public figure. You have another brother who’s led Trump building projects in India, Scotland, Chicago and Las Vegas-and all three were a part of your father’s reality TV show the Apprentice. Your mother also happens to be an intelligent supermodel, and your father led a historic movement that 62 million Americans followed, making him the new President of the United States of America.
I can’t even imagine what these people would have said about the ten year old me. If we switched places, the same hateful, self loathing group would have mocked my shyness, questioned my lack of eye contact, over analyzed my lack of attention span, diagnosed me as Autistic and made fun of my height, all without considering the context of the situation…because they simply don’t care.
The truth is you did far better than most of us would have done in your position. The weight of your siblings success, your father’s new role as the leader of the most powerful country in the world, all while looking across at prestigious politicians and close to a million Americans that adore your father. That would be a substantial amount to process for anyone, much less a ten year old boy.
It would have only been natural to feel as though you too, were being boxed in as you stood up on that stage…but you rose to the occasion and accepted the challenge, showing us all you’re your father’s son.
The best part is, even though your family can sometimes be overwhelming, and you’ll always have lofty expectations to rise to, the ones that created that endless pressure will always have your back, as will 62 million other Americans.
