Here's Why Eric Trump Says His Dad's Life Actually Got Worse After Running For President

Unlike his older brother, the president's middle son tends to steer clear of social media quarrels, arguments, and controversy. But on the rare occasion that he does step out into the spotlight, he gives his observers brief yet revealing glimpses into his and the rest of the first family's life. In a recent interview with Westchester Magazine, for example, Eric Trump admitted deciding to run for president made his dad's life way worse.

Trump got candid with the publication in a interview published on May 30, in which he briefly touched upon how life had changed over the past two years. It seems as if the political strain felt across the country has also reached Trump and his family, who currently live the northern New York county of Westchester. If his father did not announce that he was vying to become the president of the United States, Trump said that "there would be far fewer headaches." But he added that it was worth the trouble "when you know you’re in it for the right reasons."

In what some may call a rare display of openness, Trump added,

My father’s life became exponentially worse the minute he decided to run for president. He didn’t need to do this, but he was immensely frustrated with where the country was going.

Trump isn't alone in his yearning for a time before his father competed for the title of American president. His wife, Lara Trump, also misses the olden times. In the same interview with Westchester Magazine, she said that she would "pine for the old days" — which could presumably be a reference to her previous job title as an associate producer for CBS' Inside Edition.

While reading Trump's description of "headaches" and life for his father becoming "exponentially worse," some observers may recall Michael Wolff's book, Fire and Fury, which almost instantly garnered controversy for its Trump-centered content.

In his book, Wolff wrote that Donald Trump Jr. said his father "looked as if he had seen a ghost. Melania was in tears — and not of joy" on the night the presidential candidate found out that he won the 2016 presidential election. However, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders as well as the first lady's communications director, Stephanie Grisham, rejected Wolff's account as false. Still, it didn't stop curious minds from speculating.

Eric Trump also complained about criticism leveled at the members of his family, presumably referring to that on social media and in television shows. "Every day, you get abused by somebody," he said, "and the next thing you know, you’re being parodied on Saturday Night Live. It comes with the territory. We stood center stage with my father during the campaign and beyond." The criticism doesn't bother him, he said, as people within the Trump clan had "developed a bit of an armor."

But while he said he was fine with older Trump family members, such as Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump, getting parodied in media given their relative seniority in the family, he said that young Barron Trump and Tiffany Trump "should be 100 percent off-limits."

Trump's protective comments on his family in Westchester Magazine may surprise those who view the president's younger son as a somewhat socially-introverted member of the family. Still, he remains the Trump tribe's reticent figure. In their interview, both husband and wife expressed glee over ditching socializing for spending precious time with each other and their newborn.

Speaking of their home, Lara Trump said, "It’s our favorite place to be. Our friends make fun of us because we love simply spending time at our house by ourselves. They are always asking us to join them on trips here and there, and we just say we’re going to stay home. We love it."