Take Our Kids to Work Day: Press Sec Leavitt Fields “How Many Fired?”, Trump’s Superpower Wish, Favorite Child (Too Controversial), Least Favorite News Outlet, “Does He Like Hugs?”

For National Take Our Sons and Daughters to Work Day on May 20, 2025, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt hosted a kids’ briefing from the James S. Brady Briefing Room. The children of reporters and White House staff asked a remarkable range of questions. “Does President Trump like to give hugs?” — Yes, Leavitt confirmed. “How many people has he fired?” — “Thus far, actually, we have not had anyone fired, with the exception of one individual who did leave their job.” Trump’s superpower wish: “To snap his fingers and solve all of our country’s problems just like that — he likes to get things done very quickly.” His favorite candy: “Pink Starbursts and Tootsie Rolls.” Favorite McDonald’s order: “Hamburgers and french fries. Who doesn’t?” Favorite president besides himself: “He would say George Washington.” Favorite child: “That is a very controversial question and I am not going to answer it.” Least favorite news outlet: “I can tell you’re a staff kid, not a journalist’s kid. Honestly, it depends on the day.”

The Setup

Leavitt opened the briefing with characteristic warmth.

“Hello everybody! Hi everybody! Hi guys! Good afternoon everyone!” Leavitt began. “It is such a pleasure to see so many beautiful faces in this room and so many future leaders.”

She greeted specific children: “Hi Eloise, you look so cute back there!”

She explained the occasion: “I’m so excited to host this briefing today in honor of National Bring Your Kids to Work Day and it’s great to see so many future leaders here.”

She introduced herself: “Welcome to the James S Brady Briefing Room. My name is Caroline Leavitt and I am the White House Press Secretary for President Donald J. Trump.”

She described her role: “And to answer questions from journalists who work in this building every day, many of whom are your moms and your dads.”

She set the expectation: “Now they ask me some pretty good questions but I’m sure you will all have excellent questions to ask me yourselves.”

The event was an annual tradition at the White House. Children of reporters who covered the White House, along with children of White House staff, were invited to experience the press briefing room. The questions ranged from substantive policy issues (the border, climate change) to personal curiosities about the president’s habits and preferences.

”Does He Like Hugs?”

The first substantive question came from a young girl.

“She wants to know if Donald Trump likes to give hugs,” Leavitt translated.

She responded: “Oh, does he like to give hugs? You know, I think he does. I have seen him give many hugs to children and his family and our beautiful first lady. So yes, I do think he likes to give hugs.”

The question was charming in its innocence but politically significant in its framing. Much of the media coverage of Trump had emphasized his harsh persona — tough talk, aggressive rhetoric, confrontational style. The image of Trump hugging children and family members provided a counternarrative. Anecdotal evidence supported Leavitt’s answer — Trump had been frequently photographed hugging his children, grandchildren, Melania, and various children at campaign events.

”What Is the State of the Border?”

A young boy named Jack asked a surprisingly sophisticated policy question.

“What’s the state of the border?” Jack asked.

Leavitt had the context: “I can assure you the border is the most secure it has ever been in the history of our country and I think your dad works for the Homeland Security Council so that’s a very apropos question.”

The “your dad works for the Homeland Security Council” context explained Jack’s specific interest. The child of a Homeland Security Council staff member would have overheard substantial conversation about immigration and border security at home, leading to curiosity about these topics.

Leavitt continued: “Your dad’s doing a great job securing the border.”

The substantive claim — that the border was the most secure in American history — was consistent with border crossing data for the early Trump administration period. Southwest border encounters had dropped dramatically from Biden-era peaks. March 2025 encounters had been approximately 7,000 — compared to peaks of over 300,000 per month under Biden. Whether this was “most secure ever” depended on historical comparison, but it was certainly among the lowest encounter rates in modern times.

”How Many People Has He Fired?”

The timing-appropriate question came from a young girl.

“How many people has he fired?” Bobby Lynn asked.

Leavitt laughed before responding: “Thus far, actually, we have not had anyone fired with the exception of one individual who did leave their job but we have a great team here so far, so good.”

The question was humorous given Trump’s “You’re Fired!” catchphrase from “The Apprentice.” The child had likely absorbed the catchphrase from cultural context and was genuinely curious about how often Trump fired people as president.

Leavitt’s answer was technically accurate. Through May 2025, the Trump administration had experienced relatively few cabinet-level or senior staff departures compared to the tumultuous early first term. The “one individual who did leave their job” was likely a specific reference, but Leavitt’s broader point — that the administration had been relatively stable — was consistent with observable staffing patterns.

The Superpower Question

A boy named Dario asked the signature question.

“If the president could have a superpower, what would it be?” Dario asked.

Leavitt’s answer was both humorous and politically revealing: “I think if he had a superpower, it would be to just snap his fingers and solve all of our country’s problems just like that because he likes to get things done very quickly but sometimes it takes a little bit longer.”

She gave a specific example: “Like, today he had to go to Capitol Hill to convince people to vote for his one big beautiful bill. I bet if he had a superpower, he would snap his fingers and get it passed immediately but life doesn’t work that way, unfortunately.”

The “snap his fingers” answer captured something real about Trump’s governing style. He was known for impatience with bureaucratic processes, extended deliberation, and institutional inertia. The “superpower to fix everything instantly” response matched Trump’s actual political persona — the claim that problems could be solved quickly with decisive action rather than extended negotiation or gradual policy implementation.

The admission that “life doesn’t work that way” reflected the real constraints of governance. Even Trump, with Republican majorities in both houses and strong executive authority, had to navigate congressional politics, court decisions, bureaucratic implementation, and international complications. The superpower would have been useful.

Trump’s Food Preferences

Multiple questions addressed Trump’s culinary preferences.

On his favorite food: “President Trump loves a lot of different foods, but I think his favorite is probably steak. I’ve had steak with him on many occasions and he likes to eat a big beautiful steak.”

On his favorite ice cream: “I have seen the president eat ice cream sundaes before with chocolate sauce and some toppings too.”

On his favorite candy: “A good amount of candy. Yes, he likes pink Starbursts and Tootsie Rolls.”

On his favorite McDonald’s order: “He loves McDonald’s hamburgers and french fries. Who doesn’t? They’re good.”

The food preferences were well-documented. Trump’s love of McDonald’s was famous — he had been photographed eating McDonald’s on his campaign plane, had hosted the national championship football team with fast food at the White House, and had worked at a McDonald’s drive-through during the 2024 campaign as political theater.

The pink Starbursts detail was highly specific and reflected Melania’s preference for curated treat selection. During Trump’s first term, Melania had reportedly arranged for staff to set aside pink Starbursts (Trump’s favorite flavor) from multi-flavor packages, leaving only the pink ones for the President. This level of detail — the specific flavor preference — showed the genuine insider knowledge Leavitt had access to.

”Favorite President Besides Himself”

A child named Nora asked a particularly Trump-appropriate question.

“Which is Donald Trump’s favorite president besides himself?” Nora asked.

Leavitt’s answer acknowledged the obvious first: “It’s a good question because it would be probably himself.”

She then offered a more substantive answer: “Now, I think that perhaps he would say George Washington. I know he speaks very highly of George Washington who was of course the first president of our great country and he has his big beautiful portrait hanging in the Oval Office above the fireplace.”

The George Washington reference was substantiated by multiple data points. Trump had frequently expressed admiration for Washington in speeches and interviews. The portrait above the Oval Office fireplace during Trump’s terms had featured Washington prominently. Washington’s image had been featured on campaign materials and administrative communications.

The “himself” addition was characteristic Trump self-awareness. Trump’s self-assessment of his own presidency was consistently among the highest in American history. A question asking Trump to name his favorite president would very likely produce “me” as the first answer, followed by a more conventional historical selection.

”Favorite Child”

The most politically delicate question came near the end.

“What’s his favorite child?” a child asked.

Leavitt laughed before responding: “That is a very controversial question and I am not going to answer it. I know he loves all of his children very much and they’re all great kids. Some of them were here yesterday.”

The “controversial” framing was accurate. Trump had five children: Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric, Tiffany, and Barron. Any answer identifying one as the favorite would create family tension and political complications. Even as humor, the question was politically dangerous.

Trump’s children had different roles in his political life:

• Donald Jr.: Campaign spokesperson, GOP political operator
• Eric: Trump Organization executive, campaign surrogate
• Ivanka: First-term White House senior adviser (not in second term)
• Tiffany: Private life, new mother of Alexander
• Barron: High school/college age, mostly private

Leavitt’s diplomatic non-answer preserved family harmony while acknowledging the question’s comedic weight.

”Least Favorite News Outlet”

The funniest moment came from a child clearly from White House staff rather than journalist families.

“What’s your least favorite news outlet?” the boy asked.

Leavitt laughed: “I can tell you’re a staff kid, not a journalist’s kid.”

She gave the diplomatic non-answer: “Honestly, it depends on the day.”

The “depends on the day” answer was politically astute. On any given day, different outlets would produce particularly hostile coverage. Naming a specific outlet would generate news cycles about the White House feuding with that outlet. Refusing to name any specific outlet allowed Leavitt to preserve working relationships with all major outlets (even hostile ones) while not conceding that she liked any of them.

The prior partial answer that was cut off — “ABC” — suggested that if pressed, ABC might have been her specific answer that day. ABC News had been one of the more aggressively adversarial outlets toward the Trump administration, with multiple high-profile anchors and correspondents known for critical coverage.

”MAGA Gold” and Other Details

Other questions and answers revealed interesting details.

Favorite room in the White House: “The Oval Office because it’s so beautiful and he has decked it out in gold. It’s now MAGA gold in there.”

The “MAGA gold” reference described Trump’s aesthetic preference for gold accents throughout the Oval Office. Furniture, frames, fixtures, and decorative elements had been redone in gold during the second term renovation. The aesthetic echoed Trump’s personal preference for gold in his private residences (Trump Tower, Mar-a-Lago) and represented a bold stylistic departure from previous presidencies.

Religion: “The president is a Christian and he believes in Jesus.”

This was consistent with Trump’s extensive public statements about his faith during the 2024 campaign and second term. Trump had become increasingly religious in his public framing, attending more Christian events and referencing his faith more explicitly.

Trump’s pets: “He doesn’t have any pets right now. I don’t know if he had any pets when he was growing up.”

This reflected Trump’s well-known non-relationship with pets. Every modern president had brought a dog to the White House except Trump, who had explicitly stated his preference for not having pets in the residence.

Climate change: “The president cares very much about our environment. He says all the time he wants to have the cleanest air, the cleanest water, the cleanest environment for the world. He also cares very much about our energy independence.”

This framing — clean environment paired with energy independence — captured the Trump administration’s approach. Rather than the aggressive climate regulation favored by Democrats, Trump favored cleaner production at home (which was inherently cleaner than production abroad) combined with energy abundance to keep consumer prices low.

Key Takeaways

• Leavitt’s kids briefing fielded questions ranging from hugs to the border to McDonald’s orders.
• Trump’s superpower wish: “Snap his fingers and solve all country’s problems — he likes to get things done quickly.”
• Specific Trump preferences revealed: pink Starbursts, Tootsie Rolls, McDonald’s hamburgers, big beautiful steak.
• Favorite president besides himself: “George Washington — portrait hangs over Oval Office fireplace.”
• Favorite child refused: “Very controversial question, I am not going to answer it.”