PresidentDonald Trump arrives to speak at an election night rally on Nov. 9 in New York with his son Barron and wife Melania. | AP Photo White House asks for privacy for Trump's son Barron

The White House on Tuesday effectively proclaimed that Barron Trump, President Donald Trump’s 10-year-old son, is off limits.

In a brief statement to the media without mentioning Barron by name, the White House noted the “longstanding tradition that the children of Presidents are afforded the opportunity to grow up outside of the political spotlight.”


The reminder comes after Barron was subjected to criticism on Inauguration Day, which he and other members of the Trump family attended late last week.

Katie Rich, a writer for “Saturday Night Live,” was suspended for tweeting that the president’s adolescent son would become the nation’s “first homeschool shooter.” Rich apologized Monday for what she described as an “insensitive” and “inexcusable” tweet.

Chelsea Clinton, a child of the White House herself when her father, President Bill Clinton, was in office, came to Barron’s defense in a tweet over the weekend.

“Barron Trump deserves the chance every child does-to be a kid,” she wrote, before taking a shot at his father, who vanquished Hillary Clinton in the presidential election. “Standing up for every kid also means opposing @POTUS policies that hurt kids.”

The Trump administration said it “fully expects” the tradition of leaving children of the president out of the spotlight to persist. “We appreciate your cooperation in this matter,” the White House said.

Barron is expected to finish the remainder of the school year in New York, where he is staying with his mother, first lady Melania Trump, before moving into the White House.