Twitter, ‘NYT’ Blast Trump On Christmas After He Calls 7-Year-Old Child’s Belief In Santa Claus ‘Marginal’
President Donald Trump was roundly criticized by social media users and news publications alike on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning after he was captured on video telling a 7-year-old child that her belief in Santa Claus is, at her age, “marginal.”
As reported by USA Today, Donald and Melania Trump spoke to a number of children who called the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD)-run Santa Tracker on Monday night, as the president and first lady remained in Washington for the holidays due to the ongoing government shutdown. The Santa Tracker, according to the publication, was first introduced 63 years ago and has since allowed children from all over the world to place a call and get the latest updates on Santa Claus’ journey from the North Pole to their homes.
During one of these phone calls, Donald Trump reportedly asked one child if she is still a “believer in Santa,” before adding a follow-up question that some publications, including ABC News Australia, interpreted as the president’s way of suggesting to the child that Santa Claus isn’t real.
“Because at [7-years-old], it’s marginal, right?”
After making the following remark, Trump told the young girl to “just enjoy [himself]” and moved on to the next call. Later in the day, Melania Trump took to Twitter to say that speaking to children calling the Santa Tracker is “becoming one of [her] favorite traditions.”
As news of Donald Trump’s “marginal” comment spread, several public figures and lawmakers took to Twitter to criticize the president for potentially ruining Christmas for the 7-year-old child he spoke to. As quoted by the Hill, Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy was one of the lawmakers who disapproved of Trump’s handling of the situation, as he made his feelings known in a Twitter post on Monday evening.
“It’s just too freaking fantastic that Trump spent his Christmas Eve calling seven-year-olds and telling them believing in Santa at their age is ‘marginal.'”
President Trump questioned a 7-year-old’s belief in Santa Claus, telling the child it was “marginal” at that age to still think Father Christmas is real. https://t.co/uNmhIiO8BY
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) December 25, 2018
According to the Hill, several Twitter users referred to Trump as a “supervillain,” while one user, in particular, suggested that the president’s comments to the child represented a “war on Christmas.” Another user took issue with Trump’s timing, as well as his reputation among his detractors as a liar.
“One thing about a pathological liar is they never know when it’s the right time to tell the truth.”
In addition to the above reactions, the New York Times’ Daniel Victor wrote a Christmas morning op-ed, where he warned young children not to read his article and called out Donald Trump for “breaking the covenant” where parents agree to preserve the illusion of Santa Claus for their children, in the spirit of Christmas. As he saw it, Trump’s description of the child’s belief in Santa as “marginal” was a suggestion that she would “probably get wise” to how her Christmas presents actually come from her parents and loved ones.
