WASHINGTON – Fresh off a trip to Asia, President Donald Trump welcomed trick-or-treaters dressed in elaborate costumes, from Buzz Lightyear to the Bucc-ees Beaver, to the White House for Halloween festivities Oct. 30.
Ballerinas, superheroes, dinosaurs, and even the twins from The Shining anxiously lined up along the White House’s South Drive to greet the president and First Lady Melania Trump. One family dressed up as the drive-thru window of the president’s favorite fast-food restaurant: McDonald’s.
Strings of orange, gold, and brown leaves cascaded around the portico balcony. Friendly-faced jack-o-lanterns interspersed with green and white gourds; orange and red mums and arrangements of dried flowers dotted the stairs leading up to White House.
Behind those waiting along the driveway, a tan fence concealed the demolition of the East Wing, though a yellow bulldozer peeked out over the top.
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump host trick-or-treating children during a Halloween event at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., October 30, 2025.
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“It’s a long line. It’s almost as big as the ballroom,” quipped Trump, wearing a red USA hat and his quintessential red tie, referring to the 90,000-square-foot addition he plans to make to the residence.
The president greeted families hours after returning to the White House from a whirlwind, weeklong trip to Asia where he sought to cement trade deals with China and South Korea and threatened to resume nuclear weapons testing.
The celebrations follow 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 estate in pumpkins, dried cornstalks and red apples.
President Donald Trump and US First Lady Melania Trump host a Halloween event at the White House in Washington, D.C. on October 30, 2025.
Former President Barack Obama welcomed local school children 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.
Trump this year appeared to make a callback to his first term in the White House. At one point, he placed a candy bar atop the square head of a child dressed as the DJ Marshmello, similar to a viral moment from the 2019 White House Halloween when Trump put candy on top of a child’s minion costume.
For most other trick-or-treaters, the president and first lady plopped full-size Hershey bars and Twizzlers in boxes with the presidential seal into children’s candy bags.
Pop-culture costumes ruled the evening, though some leaned into politics. Trump appeared to enjoy a group of trick-or-treaters who opted to dress up like him, the first lady and the Secret Service – giving the young “Trump” a high five.
President Donald Trump displays a print of a TIME cover that mentions his 2024 assassination attempt, that a girl gave him to sign, during a Halloween event for children at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., October 30, 2025.
One young girl asked the president to sign a print-out of the 2024 TIME Magazine cover published after the assassination attempt against him.
The White House is decorated ahead of a Halloween trick-or-treat event with U.S. President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump, in Washington, D.C., U.S., October 30, 2025.
The Air Force String quartet, outfitted with black instruments, played the foreboding soundtracks from movies, including Halloween, Jaws and Harry Potter.
“They’re good” Trump mouthed, pointing toward the musicians.
Those attending the Halloween party included the parents and children of military, law enforcement, foster and adoptive families, as well as some Trump administration staff and their children.
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President Donald Trump gestures amid decorations following a Halloween event at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., October 30, 2025.
The celebration came amid uncertainty about whether the nation’s military troops would receive their next paycheck on Oct. 31, as the government shutdown drags on, and as families brace for lapses in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.
The First Lady’s office said it planned to donate pumpkins and gourds scattered around the portico to DC Central Kitchen after the event.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump welcomes trick-or-treaters to the White House amid shutdown
