Trump turns into coach as children take part in Easter Egg Roll: 'Is everybody focused?'

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump grabbed a whistle on Monday, April 6, turning the White House South Lawn into his personal gridiron as he barked orders at children during the annual Easter Egg Roll.

Flanked by first lady Melania Trump and a giant pink-eared Easter Bunny, the 47th President transformed into Coach Trump as he hyped up the budding athletes. 

Coach Trump in action

With a shiny whistle dangling from his neck, Trump lined up the little competitors and unleashed a no-nonsense pep talk.

“This is very athletic. Focus. Total focus. Is everybody focused?” Trump told the young participants.

The children wore pastel dresses, bow ties, and bunny ears, snapped to attention as Coach Trump blew the whistle to kick off the races. Melania stood right beside him, smiling, while the Easter Bunny hovered nearby.

The South Lawn was packed with an estimated 30,000 to 50,000 attendees, families from across the country who’d scored tickets through the annual lottery. Marine Band music pumped in the background, children bounced through egg hunts, mini-golf stations, and a “Be Best” military card-writing booth.

Parents roared with laughter as Trump paced the starting line, demanding total concentration from the children. 

Trump salutes America's egg farmers

Before the races even started, Trump took the South Portico stage with Melania for opening remarks.

He praised the nation’s egg farmers for stepping up after last year’s price crunch. He also made it clear he wasn’t about to roll out fake plastic eggs on his watch.

“It’s hard to believe they didn’t want me to order eggs for the Easter egg roll, the Easter egg hunt that we have here every year. They wanted me to use plastic. I said, ‘I’m not using plastic. We’ll get it solved,’” Trump told the crowd.

He continued, “Within a short period of time, eggs came down. … We had so many eggs, we didn’t know what to do with them. Today, we have more than 40,000 eggs supplied by all of the great egg farmers that are with us. I want to thank all of the associations and the egg farmers, and all of the people that are here.”

The speech drew applause from the lawn packed with families, and the egg farmers were invited as special guests. Trump tied the whole thing to America’s 250th birthday, calling the event a celebration of “the greatest country on earth.”

Trump wishes everyone 'Happy Easter and God bless America'

Trump kept the energy high all afternoon, mingling with children, signing autographs, and even sitting down for some coloring time. The first lady read books in the Reading Nook alongside guest readers, including second lady Usha Vance.

As the day wound down, Trump closed with an Easter message to the country.

“We were a dead country. We had an administration that didn’t know what the hell they were doing," he said. “Today we have the hottest country anywhere in the world. We’re respected by everybody. That’s the way we’re going to keep it.”

He added, “And most importantly, I want to just say Happy Easter and God bless America. We have the greatest country on Earth. God bless you all. You are very, very special people."