Donald Trump calls Vance and Rubio ‘kids’, buys them shoes

U.S. President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S. (REUTERS)

• Trump bought shoes for Vance and Rubio, calling them "kids" during an interview
• Vance and Rubio showed reporters shoes gifted by Trump, sparking online debate
• Social media reactions varied from amused and endearing to uncomfortable and critical.

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An offbeat moment from a recent interview of US President Donald Trump has sparked chatter on social media after it emerged that he personally bought shoes for Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, casually referring to them as “kids”.

According to The New York Times, Trump was interacting informally with aides during the interview and repeatedly used the term “kids” while speaking about senior officials around him, including Vance, 41, and Rubio, 54.

At one point, both Vance and Rubio reportedly showed reporters the shoes they were wearing, saying the President had purchased them. Rogers noted that Vance even lifted his leg to display the footwear, while Pager reported that the two officials said Trump had gifted them four pairs each, including black dress shoes and tuxedo shoes.

The anecdote quickly triggered mixed reactions online, with users divided over whether the gesture was amusing, endearing or unsettling.

Some social media users defended the moment as harmless. “That’s cute,” one user wrote, while another said, “I call those younger than me kid so what’s your point????” A third post added, “He’s 80. They’re the same age to him as his kids. This might be the first endearing thing I’ve read about Trump in ages.”

Others approached it with humour. “Wait, I only get 2 dolls, and they get 4 pairs of shoes? This ain’t America!” one user joked, while another quipped, “Makes sense. Vance could literally be his grandson.”

However, the episode also drew criticism. Some users described the exchange as uncomfortable, with one post asking, “Is this not odd, creepy and disturbing?” Another commented that while Trump was “old enough to be their dads”, the behaviour felt “ridiculous”, even if some found the gesture superficially sweet.