President Donald Trump‘s youngest son Barron Trump gets lot of attention. Be it his height, dating life, or days at NYC campus, people are always talking about him. He has surprised a lot of people lately, mostly because he seems so different from his dad, Donald Trump. He was once dubbed “Mini Donald.” However sometimes, it seems like the fatherly influence in Barron’s life comes from somewhere else.
One example is Donald Trump’s 2025 inauguration. Barron shook hands with both Former President Joe Biden and Former Vice President Kamala Harris. That left onlookers stunned and even sparked talk that he might have a future in politics.
There is one thing to note here. Trump refused to shake Biden’s hand before their 2024 presidential debate and only shook Harris’ hand in a later debate. She initiated the gesture. Podcaster Patrick Bet-David has even shared how impressed he was when Barron personally walked him and his guests to their car after a 2024 dinner.
That kind of thoughtfulness, insiders say, might come from someone else in the family, Barron’s grandfather, Viktor Knavs. “Viktor is extremely close to his grandson, Barron, and you often see them walking around Mar-a-Lago together — or at least you did before Barron went off to New York University,” a source told the Daily Mail in May 2025. Knavs is known to be a very private man. However, according to sources he’s been passing along some life lessons to Barron.
Donald and Barron’s relationship has raised eyebrows before. In an October 2024 appearance on the PBD Podcast, Donald made waves when he called his son “cute” and said Barron had never dated anyone. For all anyone knows, Barron may have dated before, and his father simply didn’t know.
During the campaign, Donald often credited Barron with helping him connect with younger voters, and the two seemed close. But after Inauguration Day, Barron stepped out of the spotlight. He didn’t even attend the traditional White House Easter Egg Roll in 2025, despite most of the family showing up.
Then in August 2025 there was a moment that fueled even more talk of distance between them. Speaking to reporters, Donald referred to Barron as Melania’s son. “She’s got a great love of children, she has a wonderful son that she loves probably more than anybody, including me, I hate to say it,” he said (via People). The remark pointed out just how much Barron might prefer the company of his grandfather over his father.
