He might hit the headlines from time to time, but Donald Trump’s son Barron has a habit of staying out of the spotlight.
However, the 20-year-old son of Donald and Melania – currently studying at New York University’s Stern School of Business campus in Washington DC – has sparked conversation again, and this time it’s all to do with his nephew.
Because Joseph Kushner, the eldest son of Donald’s daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner, just celebrated his 13th birthday with a celebratory dinner at The White House, surrounded by family members.
Ivanka shared a bunch of photos on Instagram to mark his passage into the teenage years, showing the youngster, dressed in a blue-grey suit and matching tie, standing outside The White House, sitting in the Oval Office, and posing for snaps with his grandfather and mother.
Ivanka captioned the snaps: ‘An unforgettable birthday dinner for Joseph, hosted by Grandpa at the White House. Thirteen is off to quite a start!’
One thing became quite apparent from the pics, however. Just how much Joseph resembles uncle Barron when he was the same age.
Both Joseph and Barron share the same sharp features, while the newly-crowned teenager has dark hair swept across the forehead, exactly as Barron had when he was of similar age.
Of course we have no clue yet whether Joseph will be as tall as Barron, but given his uncle is 6 foot 9 he’s still got a fair bit of growing to do.
Joseph is the middle child of Jared and Ivanka, who are also parents to 16-year-old Arabella and younger son Theodore, 10.
Barron, the president’s youngest child, is said to be closer to his nieces and nephews than his half-siblings, given he is closer in age to them.
On the day of his dad’s first inauguration in 2017, he was seen entertaining Joseph’s younger brother Theodore with a game of peek-a-boo, and has also been seen holding hands with Joseph on The White House lawn.
Ivanka said at the time: ‘Now with Barron here they have so much fun together, and they are so young. They’re really just kids. So they are just enjoying it.’
Barron, who was born on March 20, 2006, is the only child from Donald Trump’s marriage to current wife Melania. Although he was kept largely out of the glare of the media by his parents, his mother has previously spoken about aspects of his childhood.
Reports have suggested that the teenager enjoyed a luxurious upbringing with no expense spared when it came to such aspects as education, although Melania has also stated that she tried to be as hands-on as possible when Barron was young, keeping childcare to a minimum.
‘I think it’s very important,’ she told People in 2015. ‘If you have too much help you don’t get to know your children.’
She added: ‘Barron…needs somebody as a parent there, so I am with him all the time.’
As for Donald? He shared his own rules for good parenting with the New York Post.
He advised: ‘I always said the same thing. I said: no drugs, no alcohol, no cigarettes. I also would say don’t get tattoos, but I don’t say it too strongly, because a lot of people have gotten tattoos, and that’s what they choose to do.’
He said of his youngest son: ‘Barron is great. He is very tall and good.’