Kids are like little sponges—even when it seems like they aren’t paying attention, they’re still picking up on adult anxieties or background television noise, like they were during the 2016 election cycle. (Just look at how bullying rates in schools spiked after Election Day.) So I wondered, what do children think about Trump?
I reached out to some of America’s youngest citizensto see what they thought about the president-elect. Their reactions ranged from cute to tragic. Some young revolutionaries started their own protests, like Lily in Florida, age 7, who started a “Trump sucks” chant on her after-care bus. Others aren’t quite sure who Donald is but are familiar enough with the political climate—like Blake, age three, in New York City—to declare, “I like Harry Clinton.”
“I don’t think that it’s right to say global warming isn’t real just to make more money. I also didn’t like how he would call Hillary names during the debates. I’m worried about people making fun of my siblings who have disabilities.”
— Colt, 12, Louisiana
“Well, I like his hair. He gives good directions on Home Alone (whispers: “down the hall and to the left”). He wears a fancy suit like daddy, and he beat Hillary.”
— Caitlyn, 7, New York
“Personally, I don’t like Donald Trump because from what I’ve seen so far, he makes fun of women; he’s racist; he’s going to build a wall which we can’t afford. I know that he lies a lot.”
— John, 12, New York
“I think that he says what he truly thinks and not what he thinks people want to hear. He should not be racist, because America has all of the races and the racists. No matter what race is the majority, he should be concerned about actually making America great again and including everyone in that.”
— Caleb, 11, Louisiana
“I don’t know much about Donald Trump and what he’s going to do. What I do know is that he cannot do anything without the other branches of the US government agreeing, and there’s a high chance that they won’t agree. Even if the legislative branch agrees, it still has to go past the judicial branch.”
— Alanna, 10, Florida
“I feel like Donald Trump will get us in a lot of trouble. He suffers from foot-in-mouth disorder. Amongst a whole lot of other things, but I don’t want to get abducted by the FBI.”
“I don’t think Donald Trump will be a very good president, because he wants to make the Mexicans pay for their own wall, and he wants to drive all the Mexicans back to Mexico.”
— Finn, 9, Florida
“An orange hunk of skin and hair who the Democrats allowed to win.”
— Andrew, 13, Massachusetts
“I feel like Donald Trump will get us in a lot of trouble. He suffers from foot-in-mouth disorder. Amongst a whole lot of other things, but I don’t want to get abducted by the FBI.”
— Amir, 12, Georgia
“I think he seems too sure of himself from watching the debates. He says he is going to do things and seems so positive about it, but I’m just afraid he’s not going to do everything he says he is for America.”
— Miranda, 11, Louisiana
“Uhm. Well, since I don’t know a lot about him, I only know what I’ve heard from other people and you and the news — I just think he’s a bad person. I don’t really think he’s ready to become president just because he thinks he is. Just because he has all this money and all this power, he thinks he can do whatever he wants, but that’s not what I think a president should be doing. They should be leading the country, not bringing us to mass destruction.”
— Samara, 12, Virginia
“I think some people don’t realize what he actually is. They think of one thing but not the other. They want him because he’s a Republican, but they don’t think about the fact that he’s mean.”
— Jean-Paul, 11, Louisiana
“It’s OK, Mom. Next year they’ll let the girl win.”
— Lucy, 5, New Jersey
“I think Donald Trump is rude and not nice to people. Especially when he’s doing speeches. He’s not polite. He doesn’t know how to talk to people in public. Also, he’s racist, and he says it a lot in his tweets and the news. Also, sexist.”
— Lena, 11, Louisiana
“It’s OK, Mom. Next year they’ll let the girl win.”
“I think that he is kind of outspoken. Like, he says what is on his mind—whatever he thinks. He doesn’t care if it’s going to offend some people. He just cares about himself. Maybe because he thinks he has enough money to do whatever he wants.”
— Rachel, 12, Louisiana
“I think he’s a rich jerk that thinks he can be anything he wants to be.”
— Ari, 9, Virginia
“I don’t think Trump is that suited to be president. I think people didn’t vote for Hillary Clinton because people were making things up about her.”
— Felipe, 11, Louisiana
“He’s the ugliest person in the world because he’s mean to everyone.He’s a ginormous dinosaur, and people don’t like him when he does bad things.”
— Max, 4, Pennsylvania
“He’s horrible.”
— Marilyn, 6, Alabama
“Donald Trump is a rude man.”
— Orion, 4, Kansas
“I don’t really care about Trump. Kids at school say the Mexicans are stealing our jobs and he’s going to stop that, but how can he? A wall? Yeah…”
— Colin, 10
“He’s a ginormous dinosaur, and people don’t like him when he does bad things.”
“I watched a few minutes of the debates, and then I turned it off because some of the stuff he says is kind of dumb. He says stuff that comes to his mind and doesn’t think about how it might hurt people. I kind of think he is going to start wars with a lot of the countries because he makes them mad.”
— Katelyn, 11, Louisiana
“ I think that Trump is not going to be able to pull off everything he says he is. I also am worried about immigration because of crime. I am also Muslim and worry about the amount of terrorists coming and Obama not doing anything about them. I also do feel that Donald Trump is a fraud and doesn’t care as much about minorities.”
— Ali, 11, Louisiana
“I just hope Donald Trump takes care of the earth and doesn’t let people litter and tells them to recycle.”
— Katelyn, 6, New Jersey
“I don’t like him. Who is he?”
— Megan, 3, Alabama
“I think he looks like my friend Jimmy from my preschool class.”
— Anna, 4, New Jersey (Mom’s note: “Jimmy is a pain in the ass.”)
“I despised both candidates, but I despise him more. I have done as much research as I can, but I feel people voted for him because he is not a politician, and he’s a businessman. Businessmen are more interested in their self-interests, which worries me, because politicians are supposed to help the public rather than themselves. I am afraid this could be very bad. Politicians have not done a good job of taking care of the poor so far, and I worry this might not improve. I also worry that now people think just anyone can run for president, even horrible people.”
— Jenna, 11, Louisiana
