President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump hosted their annual Halloween celebration at the White House on Thursday evening, continuing a tradition that draws families from across the country to the South Lawn.
During the event, Trump repeated a now-famous Halloween moment from 2019 that quickly went viral when he placed candy on top of a child’s costume instead of in their treat bag.
In 2019, Trump and the first lady had greeted children dressed in costumes outside the White House when a boy appeared wearing a minion outfit from the Disney movie Despicable Me.
Instead of placing candy in the boy’s bag, Trump set a chocolate bar on top of his head.
Melania, standing beside him, followed suit.
That clip circulated widely online, with many sharing the lighthearted moment as an example of Trump’s spontaneous style during public events.
Six years later, the president recreated the scene almost exactly.
As a child dressed as the DJ Marshmello approached the couple Thursday night, Trump once again placed a candy bar on top of the child’s helmet instead of inside his bag.
The child, whose identity was not disclosed, appeared momentarily puzzled before realizing what had happened. He looked up toward the president and walked away with the candy bar still balanced on his head.
Melania Trump, standing nearby, handed out candy to other children but did not imitate her husband this time.
The White House Halloween celebration featured decorations across the South Portico, themed lighting and tables filled with candy for visiting children.
Families in attendance included members of the military, law enforcement officers, foster families and adoptive parents.
Fox News reported that guests also included families of current and former White House staff, who were invited to participate in the long-running event that has been a fixture of Halloween celebrations in Washington since the Eisenhower administration.
The moment quickly gained attention on social media, where many users recognized it as a deliberate callback to the viral 2019 exchange.
Conservative commentator Benny Johnson posted on X, “PART TWO: President Trump just put a candy bar on a trick-or-treater’s head AGAIN,” adding a laughing emoji to the post.
Danny De Urbina, a producer for Johnson, also reacted online, writing, “NO WAY! President Trump just put a candy bar on some kid’s head dressed as a marshmallow at the White House Halloween Party and made him balance it while waddling off. He knows the meme. Gangster.”
The posts quickly accumulated thousands of shares and likes, with several users pointing out the similarities between the 2019 and 2025 videos.
2025:
2019:
Also on Thursday night, Trump called on Congressional Republicans to invoke the “nuclear option” by ending the Senate filibuster to bring the ongoing government shutdown to an end.
In a post on his Truth Social account, the president said he had reflected on questions raised by world leaders during his trip to Asia.
He claimed they asked him how Democrats were able to shut down the United States and why Republicans allowed it to happen.
“The fact is, in flying back, I thought a great deal about that question, WHY?” Trump wrote.
The president argued that Democrats had become “Crazed Lunatics that have lost all sense of WISDOM and REALITY” since losing power in Washington, D.C.
He attributed their actions to what he described as a “sick form” of Trump Derangement Syndrome.
Trump accused Democrats of wanting “Trillions of Dollars to be taken from our Healthcare System and given to others who are not deserving – People who have come into our Country illegally, many from prisons and mental institutions.”
