Halloween celebrated at White House
Washington-area children trick-or-treat on South Lawn
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump dressed up as himself, complete with his trademark red tie, for his first Halloween in the White House.
Trump and first lady Melania Trump greeted some of the 6,000 children and adults who were invited for trick-or-treating at the White House on Halloween eve. Children from more than 20 schools in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia attended the festivities on the South Lawn, along with military families and members of unspecified community organizations.
Spooky music played over loudspeakers. Machines cranked out fog. Pumpkins carved with the likenesses of past presidents decorated the south entrance of the White House. Black spiders hung from webs spun between the portico’s columns. A sign over an awning proclaimed “Halloween at the White House 2017.”
Trump and the first lady, who wore a calf-length coat in the crisp air, welcomed dinosaurs, athletes, police officers, skeletons and more. Trick-or-treaters took home individual gift bags containing presidential M&Ms, a home-baked cookie and other candies.
Trump and his wife chatted with the children, with the president at times going in for a high-five or posing for photos, including with White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders and her family. “Sarah, get in here,” the president said as her kids lined up for a photo. Mrs. Trump wished trick-or-treaters a “Happy Halloween.”
Cabinet members joining the fun included Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, dressed as Ms. Frizzle from “The Magic School Bus;” Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin, sporting a make-believe knife through the head; and Attorney General Jeff Sessions sans costume.
The president held a brief, preHalloween celebration in the Oval Office on Friday with the children of White House reporters. He congratulated the journalists for doing a good job raising children and handed out White House Hershey’s Kisses.
“I cannot believe the media produced such beautiful kids. How the media did this, I don’t know,” Trump exclaimed as the youngsters crowded around his historic desk.
Halloween has been celebrated at the White House since the mid-20th century, with each administration putting its spin on the holiday, according to the White House Historical Association.
First lady Mamie Eisenhower decorated the White House for Halloween for the first time. She invited staff members’ wives to an Oct. 30, 1958, lunch in the State Dining Room.