Years after MSNBC first speculated that Barron Trump, now 17, is not really former President Donald Trump's son, media figures are still making comments about it and wondering exactly what their relationship is.
The rumors cited in a Monday post on The List are actually three-plus years old, but any possible dig at Trump right now is a way to respond to Republicans dug in with support for him that persists despite four indictments and 90 separate criminal charges pending against him.
The inciting incident was a 2019 statement he made to the press when he was considering banning vaping products because they were targeting children.
"And that's how the First Lady got involved. She's got a son — together — that is a — a beautiful young man. And she feels very, very strongly about it," Trump said about Barron, who was 13 at the time.
The comment led MSNBC's "Morning Joe" host Mika Brzezinski to say, "Maybe it is Melania's son" and to suggest that it wasn't Donald's because he "didn't remember Barron's name."
Co-host and Brzezinksi's husband Joe Scarborough pooh-poohed her comments at the time, but they got more attention than such a comment might have warranted.
Around Father's Day in 2020, Food Network host John Henson picked up on the speculation by tweeting, "I hope Barron gets to spend the day with whoever his father is."
The tweet offended Melania Trump enough that her spokesperson called it "inappropriate and insensitive."
The speculation happened, as with most speculation, because Melania has kept Barron out of the public eye. He spent his formative years in private schools and under the protective eye of his mama bear instead.
What media figures can't observe and legitimately report, they just make up.
The media already knows Trump hasn't been a hands-on parent from previous interviews, so it shouldn't be that surprising if there's not much to tell about their relationship.
Trump has on other occasions said Barron will become something great.
And have you seen the kid? He's six foot eight, but looks an awful lot like a younger version of his father. Questioning his parentage is a big stretch.
In all likelihood, Trump will have a lot more to do with and say about Barron when he gets old enough to join dad in the family business, if he decides to do so.
He has close relationships with his three adult children, so it makes sense that he would want Barron close when the time comes as well.
