Two Trump family children start at new schools, quietly
WASHINGTON — In this age of smartphones and a politically divided public, President Donald Trump’s two youngest children have managed the nearly impossible: They’ve turned up on their respective school campuses without the traditional news media and security brouhaha that surrounds the first day of school for a commander-in-chief ’s child.
There was no breathless coverage as 23-year-old Tiffany Trump, the daughter of Trump and his second wife, Dalton, Ga., native Marla Maples, began law school at Georgetown University a week ago. Tuesday, the school year quietly began for Barron Trump, the president’s fifth child and youngest son, who earlier this year enrolled at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School in Potomac, Md., 20 miles away from the White House.
Schoolgoing children signal to the public that a first family — even one that shuns Washington traditions — has put down tangible roots in the area. But what appears to be a low-key transition belies the complicated logistics of protecting first children and respecting their privacy, according to W. Ralph Basham and Mark J. Sullivan, two of the Secret Service’s recent directors.
“The kid wants you to be part of the woodwork,” Basham said. “They want to have a normal experience, whether it’s in grade school, high school or college.” But it’s extremely difficult for the Secret Service, he said, “to provide them with that and, at the same time, make sure that nothing happens to them.”
The Secret Service, which has been financially strained and resources-trapped in recent months by the security demands of the large Trump family, had no comment. The White House, when reached for comment, asked for privacy.
Over the past several decades, the pressure has mounted on presidential children as the first-day-of-school ritual has become increasingly scrutinized. President Jimmy Carter’s choice to send his daughter, Amy, to Washington public schools triggered a media circus. The decision by President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton to send their daughter, Chelsea, to the private Sidwell Friends School in Washington made national news.
The Obamas’ decision to send their daughters, Sasha and Malia, to the same school in 2009 was also met with intense national interest. When both girls were shuttled to their first day of school by their mother, Michelle Obama, and a team of Secret Service agents, a photographer for Barack Obama’s transition team captured the proceedings.
There was no such photo op Tuesday. Barron’s privacy has been fiercely guarded by the Trump White House, where officials have taken pains to keep life normal and protect him from those critical of his family.
Kate Andersen Brower, the author of the book “First Women,” said the high level of scrutiny directed at Barron, who unlike previous first children did not grow up with a father in politics, could be a factor in the Trump family’s decision to buck tradition. They skipped elite, progressive-leaning schools like Sidwell Friends and instead chose to send their son to a school farther from the White House.
In May, Melania Trump, the first lady, released a statement that said the family had chosen for Barron to attend the school because of its “diverse community” and “commitment to academic excellence.” The coed school, which sits on a 19-acre campus, has a median class size of 15 and six students for each teacher. Tuition is $38,590 for middle school and $40,650 for high school, not including a $1,000 enrollment fee.
Georgetown University’s law school tuition is $59,850 a year. In the case of Tiffany Trump, a photo posted to her Instagram account was the only public clue she had arrived in Washington for school. Students there have been quietly wondering for months what her presence might mean for security on campus.
When both of the Trump children show up on their campuses, they bring with them much more than school supplies: the highly trained, earpiece-wearing and hardly school-age special agents of the Secret Service. The agency’s black SUVs have toted all recent first children to and from school and then followed them through the door.
That is where it gets complicated, said Basham and Sullivan, the former Secret Service directors.
“There is no playbook you can go by,” Basham said. “Of course, recognizing the consequences of something potentially happening is obviously extremely concerning, but it can be an incredibly boring assignment. It’s very challenging to keep yourself alert and focused day after day, sitting at school, waiting for the bell to ring — but they do.”