President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump hosted a Halloween celebration at the White House.
See the Halloween spirit with pumpkins and dinosaurs on display
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WASHINGTON – Fresh off a trip to Asia, President Donald Trump welcomed trick-or-treaters in elaborate costumes from Buzz Lightyear to Bassey’s Beaver to the White House for Halloween celebrations on Oct. 30.
Ballerinas, superheroes, dinosaurs and even the twins from The Shining lined up anxiously along South Drive at the White House to greet the president and first lady Melania Trump. One family dressed up as a drive-thru teller at McDonald’s, the president’s favorite fast food restaurant.
Orange, gold, and brown leaves cascaded around the portico balcony. A jack-o-lantern with a gentle face, studded with green and white gourds. Arrangements of orange and red flowers and dried flowers dotted the steps leading up to the White House.
Behind the people waiting along the driveway, a tan fence hid the demolition of the east wing, and a yellow bulldozer peeked over it.
Trump, wearing a red USA hat and a typical red tie, quipped, “Long lines. It’s about the same size as a ballroom,” referring to a planned 90,000-square-foot addition to his official residence.
The president greeted his family hours after returning to the White House from a week-long tour of Asia in which he sought to strengthen trade deals with China and South Korea and threatened to resume nuclear weapons testing.
The celebration follows a long tradition of Halloween festivities at the White House, dating back more than half a century to the Eisenhower administration, when then-First Lady Mamie Eisenhower decorated the mansion with pumpkins, dried cornstalks and red apples.
Former President Barack Obama welcomed local schoolchildren and military families to trick-or-treat on the South Lawn of the White House in 2009, and the Trump and Biden administrations continued to welcome families ahead of the spooky holiday.
President Trump appears to be hoping to return to his first term in the White House this year. At one point, Trump placed a candy bar on the square head of a child dressed as DJ Marshmello. This is similar to the moment that went viral when President Trump placed candy on top of a child’s Minion costume during the 2019 White House Halloween.
At most other trick-or-treaters, the president and first lady tossed full-size Hershey bars and Twizzlers in boxes with the president’s seal into children’s candy bags.
Pop culture costumes dominated the night, but some took a political bent. President Trump appeared to be enjoying the group of trick-or-treaters dressed just like him, the first lady and the Secret Service, and gave a young “Trump” a high-five.
A girl asked the president to sign a printout of the 2024 Time magazine cover published after the president’s assassination attempt.
The Air Force String Quartet, equipped with black instruments, played foreboding soundtracks from films such as Halloween, Jaws, and Harry Potter.
President Trump pointed to the musicians and said, “They’re good.”
Participants at the Halloween party included military, law enforcement, foster and adoptive parents, and some Trump administration staff and their children.
The celebration comes amid uncertainty over whether the nation’s military members will receive their next paycheck on Oct. 31 as the government shutdown drags on and families prepare for the expiration of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.
The first lady’s office announced that after the event, the pumpkins and gourds scattered around the portico will be donated to the DC Central Kitchen.
