Melania Trump Jumps To Son Barron's Defense to Debunk Rumors He Was Rejected from Harvard — as the President Tries to Cut Funding to the Ivy League School
Melania Trump defended son Barron after Donald's decision on Harvard.
May 30 2025, Published 7:15 p.m. ET
Mama Melania Trump came to the rescue after son Barron suddenly found himself thrust into his presidential father's war with Harvard, RadarOnline.com can report.
President Trump has hit the private school with federal funding cuts, and many critics joked the commander-in-chief was really just upset Barron was supposedly rejected by the institution.
Harvard Cuts
The President suggested Musk may be suffering from 'Trump derangement syndrome.'
Earlier this week, President Trump cut approximately $100 million in federal contracts for Harvard. Rumors started swirling almost immediately that 19-year-old Barron, who just completed his first year at NYU, was shot down by the Ivy League school.
However, Melania, 55, swooped in to defend her son, telling multiple news outlets: "Barron did not apply to Harvard, and any assertion that he, or that anyone on his behalf, applied is completely false."
President Trump has canceled nearly $3 billion in federal research grants given to Harvard and has launched a push to stop the school from enrolling international students.
Currently, the Boston-adjacent campus houses around 6,800 international students, which makes up approximately 27 percent of the entire student body.
The president's order followed Harvard’s refusal to comply with a list of demands targeting the school’s DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) programs and international admissions policies.
Barron's Not-So-Normal Life
Barron has just finished his first year at NYU.
Melania has tried her best to make sure Barron has as normal a college life – despite his famous lineage. RadarOnline.com has previously revealed how worried she is he will be an outcast due to his controversial family name.
"I don't think it's possible for him to be a normal student. His experience at college, it's very different than any other kid," Melania said during an interview with Fox News.
However, she is still "proud" of her only son.
She gushed: "He is a grown young man, I'm very proud of him about his knowledge, even about politics and giving advice to his father. He brought in so many young people he knows his generation."
"Nowadays, the young generation, they don't sit in front of TV anymore, they're all on their tablets, they're on their phones and all of this these podcasts and streamers," Melania added.
"He was very vocal, and he gave advice to his father, and was incredible how he brought in a success because he knew exactly who his father needed to contact and to talk to."
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His college choice became a big topic of discussion after his high school graduation.
According to his father, Barron considered Pennsylvania University's Wharton School, the world's first collegiate business school, which former President Trump himself attended in the late 1960s, but instead opted for NYU – situated near Trump Tower in Manhattan.
Speaking to DailyMail.com, Trump said: "It's a very high-quality place. He liked it. He liked the school.
"We liked NYU. I've known NYU for a long time, but it's one of the highest rated."
He continued: "I went to Wharton, and that was certainly one that we were considering. We didn't do that. We went for Stern.
Trump concluded: "He's a very high-aptitude child, but he's no longer a child. He's just passed into something beyond childhood. He's doing great."
