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From the archives: Inside Donald Trump’s lavish 86m superyacht Trump Princess

BOAT dives into the archives to tell the full story of how Donald Trump bought the 85.9-metre (282 foot) Benetti superyacht Nabila (now Kingdom 5KR ) for close to $30 million and transformed her into Trump Princess ...

“A certain level of quality.” That is the phrase that Donald Trump returns to again and again to explain just why he bought Adnan Khashoggi’s 86 metre yacht Nabila . And an explanation is needed.

After all, Trump doesn’t water-ski or go in for swimming in a big way, and he’s always tried to avoid the sun. As a matter of fact, he has never owned a big boat before. He doesn’t even particularly like boats. “I’m not into them,” he says with a shrug, “I’ve been on friends’ boats before and couldn’t get off fast enough.”

So why spend close to $30 million on a yacht? Trump will admit that she is an “incredible toy”, even “the ultimate toy”. But words like that make the whole venture seem frivolous, so he prefers to refer to the boat which he has re-named Trump Princess , as “a work of art.” And what makes her a work of art is, of course, the “level of quality”.

To really appreciate the level of quality, Trump says you have to see the interior. That is where Khashoggi lavished money with utter abandon. Trump points out, for example, the walls of the cabins covered in chamois leather and bird’s eye maple.

Bathrooms are done not in marble but in onyx – and not just any onyx either, but onyx hand-carved by the finest craftsmen in Italy. Donald Trump bought Trump Princess , he says, “because I was buying a great piece of art at a ridiculously low price”.

Unlike Trump, Adnan Khashoggi has always had a thing about boats. The arms dealer, who took advantage of connections with the Saudi royal family to amass a fortune worth around $3 billion at its peak, acquired his first yacht when he was 18 and traded up as his wealth increased.

In the 1970s Khashoggi owned two yachts and while these were impressive, neither made quite the naked assertion of fantastic wealth he required, so he commissioned the British designer Jon Bannenberg to design the most sumptuous, the most incredible yacht the world has seen.

“He wanted the best yacht in the world,” says Bannenberg, “and we achieved that at the time.” The vessel Bannenberg created cost $35 million to build, but Khashoggi also commissioned Italian designer Luigi Sturchio to produce the interior and that is believed to have cost more than the yacht itself.

“No-one really knows what she originally cost,” says Jonathan Beckett , CEO of Burgess , the broker that arranged the sale to Trump. Named Nabila , after Khashoggi’s only daughter, the vessel was launched in 1980. Insisting that she be totally self-contained, Khashoggi had included in the specification everything from a patisserie and three-chair hair salon to a screening room with an 800-film library and a hospital with an operating theatre.

There is accommodation for a crew of 52 people. To get to and from shore, there is a helicopter landing pad and a pair of nine metre tenders. Fuel tanks holding 618,256 litres of diesel give a maximum range of 8,500 nautical miles at the cruising speed of 17.5 knots. Three water-makers produce 45,000 litres of fresh water a day from the ocean and six mammoth refrigerators carry a three-month supply of food for 100 people.

Many of Khashoggi’s most lavish parties took place aboard Nabila , but the yacht was also an invaluable business instrument. Not only movie stars but also political leaders and diplomats were invited aboard. On one occasion five heads of state – including three kings – were entertained simultaneously.

Often, Nabila ’s guests were Arab princes as well as European and American businessmen of all descriptions. Ensconced in the various suites, they used the 150 telephones and the satellite communications system to arrange arms sales and commodities trades. When contracts were ready to be signed, the yacht could quickly slip into international waters, where sovereign restrictions on business transactions do not apply. On many occasions, several deals were conducted simultaneously, in different suites.

A tour of the entire yacht, which has five decks and some 100 separate areas, would take too long, but a description just of the owner’s suite  should be sufficient to give an idea of the exquisite luxury on board Trump Princess .

The bedroom occupies the full beam of the hull. It has a tortoiseshell ceiling, a three-metre-wide bed, and bedside remote controls for the entertainment centre, for room service, even for the curtains. It also has a secret exit.

From the bedroom, we head down a corridor past a mirrored dressing room and into Trump's bathroom, where the onyx floor tiles are carved in a sunburst pattern. To one side is a room with the owner’s barber chair. Next to that is the shower and sauna. The shower has 13 nozzles and is carved in the shape of a scallop shell from a single piece of onyx — a task that took a team of workers a year to complete.

From the bathroom we proceed into Trump’s television area, then into his large sitting area, panelled in the inevitable chamois leather. From there we take the owner’s private elevator (there is another one for guests and a third for crew) to his private sundeck .

An enclosed section houses the bar, pantry, video games, and another sauna and shower. Outside, behind bullet-proof glass, sits a circular swimming pool that measures 2.4 metres in diameter.

That may seem a bit small, but there is a water jet so you can swim all day against the current and never reach the other side. A hydraulic lift raises the sunbed high above anyone else on the boat, enabling the sunbather to bask in total privacy.

When Khashoggi’s empire began to crumble during the mid-1980s, he procured a loan for $50 million, putting up Nabila as collateral. When Khashoggi defaulted on his loan in 1987, a Swiss holding company took possession of the yacht. She was therefore placed in the hands of Burgess with instructions to dispose of the yacht quickly at an asking price of $50million.

In September 1987, almost as soon as he learned that Nabila was for sale, Donald Trump made a cash bid for the yacht. Burgess had already received two other offers, one of which was equal to that made by Trump, but subject to several conditions. Jonathan Beckett flew to New York and countered Trump’s offer with a proposal of $32million. Trump responded with $28million, and half an hour later he had agreed to pay $30million — for a yacht he had never boarded.

As soon as the news was broken, Beckett was suddenly deluged with higher offers from potential buyers who had been sitting on the fence. Meanwhile, Trump was arranging to pay less. He was contacted on behalf of Khashoggi, who was said to be upset that his daughter’s name would now be on a yacht belonging to someone else. Negotiations ensued and Trump agreed to rename the boat Trump Princess if the cost were reduced by about $1million. “He got an unbelievable deal, in retrospect,” says Beckett.

Trump then spent $8.5 million having the yacht refitted in the Netherlands by Amels who repainted the hull, rebuilt the main engines and replaced 320 metres of chamois leather. One of the more garish cabins became the children’s room and the hair salon a cloakroom.

Renamed Trump Princess , the yacht, which Trump says will cost about $2.5 million a year to operate, set sail from the Azores in June 1988 and arrived in New York on July 4 in time for the huge party the Trumps threw on it that night.

In addition to private cruising with his family, Trump, like Khashoggi, uses Trump Princess as a business instrument — though in a somewhat different fashion. Trump Princess spends the summer months cruising the East Coast from her base in Atlantic City, where she docks at the marina in full view of Trump’s Castle Hotel. Trump makes the boat available for selected charities and “very high rollers who spend millions of dollars a year in the casinos”.

“There is a whole market there,” Trump explains. “While I was building Farley Marina, I was trying to get the boat, because I knew that she would blow everybody’s mind. She would become a spectacle.”

But that is what Trump Princess has been all along — a spectacular statement of astronomic wealth, a massive piece of equipment designed to arouse envy in those who behold it. Khashoggi had stipulated that the boat be huge enough to intimidate even the owners of the big yachts — and it does.

A few years ago, a friend of Trump’s was at the helm of his own very large yacht in the Mediterranean — and feeling quite proud — when Nabila roared by, practically swamping him. “He said it gave him a total inferiority complex,” Trump says. And that, no doubt, is another reason Trump bought her.

First published in 1989 as part of The Superyachts Vol. 2

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Former first lady Melania Trump made her entrance on the final night of the Republican National Convention moments before former President Donald Trump is set to deliver his speech. She has not been seen publicly during the former president’s reelection campaign. July 19, 2024

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Melania Trump's Living Situation Will Change If Donald Trump Wins, Experts Predict

General Assignment Reporter, HuffPost

Former first lady Melania Trump would likely be calling the White House home in name only if Donald Trump returns to the presidency, experts predicted in a new report.

Axios interviewed veteran observers of the reclusive ex-FLOTUS, writing Monday: “So the prospect of her rolling in for a second full-time stint in the East Wing? Doubtful, according to the handful of Melania-ologists.”

The more likely scenario would be her commuting between Palm Beach and New York, where son Barron is rumored to be attending college in the fall, Axios gleaned from the pundits. She would take up at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. “only for ceremonial undertakings like state dinners or special events.”

“She’s distancing herself even more from her husband and from the Washington social political scene,” “First Women” author Kate Anderson Brower told Axios. “I mean, she clearly hated being in Washington.”

The Washington Post’s Mary Jordan, the author of the Melania Trump biography “ The Art of Her Deal ,” said of the former first lady, “Melania does what Melania wants.”

Melania Trump would have small company among first ladies who have not lived at the White House the majority of time after the first occupants took up residence there in 1800.

Anna Harrison was packing to join President William Henry Harrison in Washington before he died a month into his term. She never made the trip.

Bess Truman and President Harry Truman lived at Blair House while renovations were being done at the White House.

But Melania Trump’s living arrangement would be more of a choice.

A 2018 Washington Post report on their life in the White House said the couple had “remarkably separate routines” and slept in their own bedrooms.

But rumors that Melania Trump actually lived with her parents and Barron in another Washington home were shot down by her staff as “100% false.”

The “Melania-ologists” didn’t speculate on what to expect from the former first lady on the hand-holding front for a White House encore, but in one memorable moment it didn’t seem so great the first time around.

A former aide to the ex-first lady, Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, said recently that Melania Trump will never separate from her husband but will be more scarce following his criminal conviction.

“ She’s going to keep her head low . She’s going to only do what she wants to do. She and Donald, I do not believe, are ever, ever going to part ways.”

HuffPost has reached out to Melania Trump’s office for comment.

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See What’s Inside Donald Trump’s Former Superyacht

When Donald J. Trump bought a 282-foot superyacht from Saudi billionaire Adnan Khashoggi in the late 1980s, it was among the largest in the world. Outfitted in marble and gold (and a master bedroom ceiling made of endangered tortoise shell), and equipped with such amenities as a helipad, a disco, and a movie theater, the Trump Princess seemed the perfect vessel for a man with a penchant for glitz. In fact, one of Trump’s first requests was to change the H on the helipad to a T.

The Trump Princess, which includes 11 cabins for 22 guests and 31 crew members, wasn’t in the real-estate tycoon’s possession for very long. By 1991, Trump was forced to sell his beloved boat. The buyer was Saudi Prince Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, who renamed the vessel the Kingdom 5KR, after his lucky number and his two children's first initials.

The yacht, which can hit a top speed of 20 knots and a cruising speed of 17.5 knots, was built in Benetti Shipyards in Viareggio, Italy, and designed by renowned craftsman Jon Bannenberg. It was once featured in the James Bond movie Never Say Never Again (1983), starring Sean Connery.

Melania Trump Isn't Billed To Speak At The RNC—Bucking A Historic Trend

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Former first lady Melania Trump is absent from the list of speakers at the Republican National Convention, continuing her noticeable absence from former President Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign and defying historical trends of spouses of presidential nominees delivering remarks at the RNC.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump stands next to former first lady Melania Trump at ... [+] fundraiser in Palm Beach, Florida. (Photo by Alon Skuy/Getty Images)

Monday evening marked the first of four days of Republican nominee Donald Trump’s third Republican National Convention, where he appeared 48 hours after an assassination attempt against him.

Melania Trump was absent on the first day of the convention, though is expected to attend this year, according to AP news.

The former first lady was not billed as a speaker for the four-day event following a trend of being largely absent from key events of her husband’s 2024 presidential run, such as the kickoff of the 2024 election in Iowa, Trump’s Super Tuesday victory party, his 78th birthday and his hush money trial in Manhattan.

While her absence has been frequent during Trump’s presidential campaign events, it bucks a historical trend of wives of Republican presidential nominees delivering remarks at the RNC and would be her first absence as a speaker at the convention.

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Surprising Fact

Spouses of presidential nominees speaking at conventions is a decades-long tradition. Wives of Republican presidential nominees, including Melania Trump in 2016 and 2020, have delivered remarks lasting around 20 minutes at the convention. Laura Bush delivered remarks at the 2000 and 2004 RNC, Cindy McCain in 2008 and Ann Romney in 2012. Additionally, spouses of Democratic nominees, including Jill Biden, Bill Clinton, Michelle Obama and Teresa Kerry, have spoken at the Democratic National Convention.

Key Background

Melania Trump has only made a handful of appearances during the former president’s 2024 run, including attending a Florida fundraiser that raised $50.5 million and speaking at a naturalization ceremony in Washington D.C., as well as attending a handful of personal events such as her son’s high school graduation. Spouses of presidential candidates often take the role of making candidates more relatable, and Melania has been sought out by the campaign to make appearances. However, her lack of public presence alongside Donald Trump has been an ongoing issue for the campaign since 2016, according to CNN. Following the former president’s trial in New York, key family members such as daughters Ivanka and Tiffany Trump have also maintained a muted presence in Trump’s campaign—and a notable absence from the RNC speaker list.

The RNC speaker list includes Donald Trump’s two sons Donald Jr. and Eric and their wives Kimberly Guilfoyle and Lara Trump, respectively. The list also includes billionaire Diane Hendricks, rapper Amber Rose and over 50 GOP officials and candidates.

On the first day of the RNC, Donald Trump selected Ohio Senator JD Vance as his running mate. Vance was seen at the conference with his wife Usha Vance, a trial lawyer and former judicial clerk. The two met while attending law school at Yale University, and Vance described his wife as a “Yale spirit guide” in his 2016 memoir “Hillbilly Elegy.”

Further Reading

Here’s Who Is Speaking At The RNC: Trump Announces Carlson, DeSantis, Vance—But No Melania (Forbes)

How Did Critics React To Netflix’s J.D. Vance Biopic ‘Hillbilly Elegy’? (Forbes)

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Former first lady Melania Trump makes a rare appearance on the Republican convention’s last night

Former First Lady Melania Trump entered the arena on the final night of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee before Donald Trump was set to address the delegates.

Trump arrives at Republican convention ahead of accepting GOP nomination for president again. His campaign says Trump will watch a few speeches from the friends and family box before returning to a hold room to greet his wife, Melania, when she arrives.

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is joined on stage by former first lady Melania Trump at the Republican National Convention Thursday, July 18, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

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Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump, center, stands on stage with Melania Trump and other members of his family during the Republican National Convention, Thursday, July 18, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Former first lady Melania Trump waves during the final day of the Republican National Convention Thursday, July 18, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

As former first lady Melania Trump watches, Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump signs paperwork to officially accept the nomination during the final day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum, Thursday, July 18, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Melania Trump and Ivanka Trump were at the Republican National Convention Thursday, making a rare appearance in support of former President Donald Trump’s third bid for president.

The former first lady and the former president’s eldest daughter have largely steered clear of the campaign trail this year, a contrast with Trump’s 2016 and 2020 campaigns when both played a larger role. Neither gave speeches.

Melania Trump’s presence helps the Republican Party show widespread unity, a theme that emerged prominently after the attempt on Trump’s life last weekend. A day after the attack, Melania issued a statement calling on Americans to “ascend above hate, the vitriol, and the simple-minded ideas that ignite violence.”

Campaigns often use spouses and families to humanize a candidate, but with Melania Trump taking a backseat this year, that job fell to other speakers, who painted a sympathetic portrait of Trump by sharing anecdotes of warm interactions between him and their children. Trump’s 17-year-old granddaughter, Kai Trump, called him “just a normal grandfather.”

Trump’s family, minus Melania, entered the arena after Trump signed paperwork formally accepting the GOP nomination. They went to the family box and stood throughout a boisterous speech by the wrestler Hulk Hogan.

Melania entered later, smiling and waving to the crowd as she walked alone into the arena and up a flight of stairs to take her seat next to vice presidential nominee JD Vance. She wore a red skirt suit as Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 played.

“On this journey, I am deeply honored to be joined by my amazing wife, Melania,” Trump said to extended applause. “And Melania, thank you very much.”

He said she “did something really beautiful” when she wrote her statement pleading for unity after the shooting.

Melania Trump later joined Trump on stage, startling him as she walked up behind him after his 93-minute speech, then whispered in his ear. The rest of the Trump family joined and balloons fell from the ceiling, an iconic tradition of political conventions. Some of Trump’s younger grandchildren, big smiles on their faces, batted balloons with their hands and feet.

As the family lingered on stage for 20 minutes, Melania Trump stood by Trump’s side being quietly affectionate, touching her husband’s arm at times and sometimes chatting with Vance and his wife, Usha Vance.

Trump’s two oldest sons, Donald Trump Jr., and Eric Trump, both spoke to delegates this week, as did their partners, Kimberly Guilfoyle and Lara Trump, respectively. Daughter Tiffany Trump and her husband, Michael Boulos, were at the convention but did not speak. The president’s youngest child, 18-year-old Barron Trump, did not appear at the convention. He declined an invitation to be a Florida delegate.

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Melania Trump has skipped key moments of her husband’s campaign, including rallies and primary-night victory parties. She did not join him in court as he faced trial over hush money payments to a porn star or for his remarks responding to the guilty verdict .

Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner , held senior roles on Donald Trump’s White House staff but did not attend Trump’s 2022 announcement that he planned another presidential campaign.

“While I will always love and support my father, going forward I will do so outside the political arena,” Ivanka Trump said in a statement at the time.

Cooper reported from Phoenix.

A Look at the Football Field-Sized Yacht Donald Trump Called His "Princess"

It supposedly had 210 telephones.

While the 420-foot behemoth never launched, Trump 's first big boat still offers a peek at his love for luxury. Here's the story behind his former floating palace.

When Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi commissioned the ship almost 40 years ago, it came with a $100 million price tag — equivalent to almost $300 million today. He named the boat  after his daughter Nabila, but you might recognize the prow under yet another name. James Bond villain Maximillian Largo operated it as the Flying Saucer  in the 1983 movie Never Say Never Again . 

Faced with financial struggles, Khashoggi lost his boat to the Sultan of Brunei as collateral for unpaid loans. Donald Trump then took it off the Sultan's hands in 1987 for a reported $29 million, although he supposedly received a $1 million discount for renaming the ship. 

After spending another $10 million in renovations, Donald and Ivana Trump welcomed New York press aboard the refurbished Trump Princess in 1988. 

The revamped boat could host 22 guests and another 52 crew members , rivaling even mansions of the stationary variety. 

With a pool, movie theater, disco, three elevators, two dining rooms,  11 staterooms and a  reported 210 telephones , the ship didn't skimp on anything — especially the gold-plated fittings.  Trump even replaced the helipad's H with a T.

Trump used the entertaining headquarters to host high rollers from his Atlantic City casinos, the  Los Angeles Times reports. The Miss America Pageant contestants also earned invitations. 

Only a few years after acquiring the yacht, the real estate recession forced Trump to give up on his seafaring lifestyle. He sold the boat to Saudi Prince al-Waleed bin Talal for $20 million, according to the Washington Post . 

With more money in his pockets, Trump (now dating Marla Maples ) commissioned a larger sequel in 1993. "I am interested in building a 420[-foot] yacht which, when completed, will not only be the largest yacht in the world, but at the same time, the most beautiful," Trump reportedly wrote to Spanish ship builders. Pesky financing issues sprung up again though, and boat never came to be.  

The original Trump Princess  still belongs to Al-Waleed bin Tala l, but it now  goes by name  Kingdom 5KR . Previously one of the largest yachts afloat, the ship now pales in comparison to the 500-foot giants currently commissioned by billionaires. 

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A history of Donald Trump’s luxury yachts

We look back at the yachts trump has owned or nearly owned - at vast expense.

Words: Gentleman's Journal

It’s no secret that Trump enjoys splashing his cash. Whether he’s gold-plating his New York Penthouse or spending millions of dollars on his Presidential campaign, this is a man who knows how to spend money. We take a look at the yachts that Trump’s either commissioned or owned, where money has never been an object.

In 1980, Benetti built a yacht for Saudi businessman and billionaire, Adnan Khashoggi, for $100 million. Originally, this beauty was named after Khashoggi’s daughter, Nabila, and was at the time ranked as one of the largest and most impressive yachts in the world. Of course, times have changed and there are now bigger and better pieces of machinery that will blow everything else out of the water. While it was owned by Khashoggi, it appeared in the Bond movie, Never Say Never Again.

Khashoggi ran into financial problems in the late 1980s when he sold the yacht to the Sultan of Brunei, who in turn swiftly sold it to Donald Trump for $29 million in 1988. After a huge refit, Trump renamed it Trump Princess. As you’d imagine, Trump’s refit wasn’t just adding a couple of deckchairs here and there: the yacht got the full works. A pool on the sun deck, a sauna, a cinema, an elevator, a disco and even a private hospital are just a couple of the amenities that Trump kitted it out with.

The H on the helipad was also replaced by a T to stand for Trump, naturally

Holland-based re-fitters Amels completed the job for near $10 million according, to the  LA Times . The H on the helipad was also replaced by a T to stand for Trump, naturally.

In 1989, after the refit was completed, Trump announced to the world on Newsday that he would be building Trump Princess II, and it would be much bigger than Trump Princess – “something in excess of 400 feet long, closer to 500 feet”. In the same breath he said that he would be accepting bids from yacht builders for this project, but it was Amels, the company that completed the refit of Trump Princess, that secured the deal to build and develop the 128-metre Trump Princess II.

One of the designs for Trump Princess II, originally created by Oliver Design

Trump’s commissioning letter to Oliver Design

A year later, in May 1990, it was announced that Trump had actually gone ahead and bought Amels as an entire company. However, the VP of Trump’s investment empire later denied that the shipyard had been sold, due to Trump’s own financial difficulties – the culprit that eventually meant that he had to cancel the construction of Trump Princess II altogether. Two months after the acquisition, that Trump had, in fact, made, he sold Amels to American businessman Peter Kutell. That month, the Trump Princess was put up for sale and work on the Trump Princess II stopped. The next year, in 1991, Trump Princess was sold to Prince Al-Waleed for $19 million who renamed the yacht to ‘Kingdom 5KR’.

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Where is Melania Trump? Expected appearance tonight in family box at RNC

MILWAUKEE - The last night of the Republican convention is expected to include a rare sighting: Former first lady Melania Trump .

Melania Trump, who has been mostly absent from the 2024 campaign trail, is scheduled to attend the convention and sit in the family box as the former president delivers his acceptance speech.

Also expected to be in attendance: Daughter Ivanka Trump , who has also stayed away from the campaign, but recently posted a tribute to her father.

"They're coming in," Eric Trump, Ivanka's brother and Melania's step-son, said on CBS on Wednesday. "They're coming in in full force and effect.... There's no family I don't think in political history that's remained closer than our family."

Melania Trump has rarely be seen in public during her husband's 2024 campaign; she did issue a lengthy written statement after Saturday's assassination attempt.

“A monster who recognized my husband as an inhuman political machine attempted to ring out Donald's passion - his laughter, ingenuity, love of music, and inspiration,” she wrote.

Melania Trump has appeared at private events this campaign year, including  closed fundraisers ; the Trumps were also  spotted at a polling place  on the day of Florida primary in March.

"Stay tuned," Melania Trump said when asked about a return to the campaign trail.

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Melania Trump Will Have a Long-Distance Relationship With the White House If Trump Wins Again, First Lady Experts Predict

As Melania Trump has long made clear, she did not enjoy her time as first lady, as evidenced by, among other things, the fact that she delayed her initial move to Washington; the infamous “ who gives a f--k” about Christmas tape; the reports that she was “ miserable ” and “ very, very unhappy with her life ;” and the massive grin on her face when she disembarked in Palm Beach on January 20, 2021. As a source told People later that year, “She was relieved when her husband's term ended.” Said another, of a then prospective 2024 run by Trump: “If he runs, I doubt she will be involved at all. If he should win, that would be the worst-case scenario for her.”

Unfortunately for both Melania and America, the ex-president did decide to run again and right now, there is an alarming possibility that he could actually win. At which point, tradition would dictate that the former first lady would return with her husband to the White House. But according to “Melania-ologists,” that may not be the case.

Speaking to Axios, several first lady experts predicted this week that Melania will not make the White House her home base in a potential second term for her spouse. The more likely scenario, they believe, would be for her to continue “jetting between Palm Beach (where she’s spent the past four years) and New York (where tongues are wagging about Baron maybe attending NYU), coming to the White House only for ceremonial undertakings like state dinners or special events.” Washington Post associate editor Mary Jordan, who wrote a book about Melania, said, “Melania does what Melania wants. Her view is unelected, not paid.” Kate Andersen Brower, who has written several books about first ladies, told the outlet: “She’s distancing herself even more from her husband and from the Washington social political scene. I mean, she clearly hated being in Washington.” (A spokesperson for Melania Trump did not respond to Axios’s request for comment.)

As Axios notes, the former first lady has effectively been “AWOL” on the campaign trail, and notably did not attend her husband’s hush money trial, or his post-conviction press conference that took place in the building where she has a home and was staying at the time . So it’s probably unlikely, at this point, that she’s dying to spend more time with the guy.

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The Very Private Life of Melania Trump

The former first lady has mostly retreated from public view — and steered clear of the campaign trail — while her husband fights to return to the White House and faces increasing legal peril.

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By Lisa Lerer and Katie Rogers

Lisa Lerer covers national politics and reported from New York. Katie Rogers, a White House reporter, covered Mrs. Trump’s tenure in Washington.

Since leaving the White House, Melania Trump’s world has gotten smaller.

Just how she likes it.

Cloistered behind the gates of her three homes, she sticks to a small circle — her son, her elderly parents and a handful of old friends. She visits her hairdressers, consults with Hervé Pierre, her longtime stylist, and sometimes meets her husband for Friday night dinner at their clubs. But her most ardent pursuit is a personal campaign: helping her son, Barron, 17, with his college search.

What she has not done, despite invitations from her husband, is appear on the campaign trail. Nor has she been at his side for any of his court appearances.

These are the days of Melania Trump, former first lady, current campaign spouse and wife to one of the most divisive figures in American public life. Unlike her predecessors, there are no plans for a speaking tour, a book or a major expansion of her charitable efforts, most of which, people close to the Trumps say, are not fully visible to the public. In her post-presidential life, Mrs. Trump wants what she could not get in the White House: a sense of privacy.

Those efforts to retreat from public life have been complicated by her husband, who has turned her once again into a candidate’s spouse. As Donald J. Trump faces a possible third indictment, she has remained steadfastly silent about his increasing legal peril.

While she supports his presidential bid, Mrs. Trump has not appeared on the trail since Mr. Trump announced his campaign in November and did not utter a public word about his effort until May, when she endorsed him in an interview with Fox News Digital.

“He has my support, and we look forward to restoring hope for the future and leading America with love and strength,” she said.

Her absence is a striking difference from the start of the first Trump campaign, when Mrs. Trump, wearing a white strapless dress, descended the golden escalator in front of her husband at his campaign kickoff at Trump Tower.

Mrs. Trump remains in touch and friendly with a small group of people from her time in the White House, including the designer Rachel Roy and Hilary Geary Ross, the prominent Palm Beach networker and wife of Wilbur L. Ross, the president’s former commerce secretary. She remains especially close with her parents, who have an apartment at Trump Tower in Manhattan and have been spotted at Trump events at Mar-a-Lago, the Trumps’ private club and residence.

“From her point of view and her friends’ point of view, she’s been through a lot and she’s come out a strong independent woman,” said R. Couri Hay, a publicist, who was an acquaintance of Mrs. Trump’s in New York before she headed to Washington. “She’s learned how to close the door and close the shutters and remain private. We don’t see a lot, we don’t hear a lot.”

Mrs. Trump declined an interview request. This account is based on a dozen interviews with associates, campaign aides and friends, most of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the private details of her life.

People close to the family say Mrs. Trump’s lack of public support should not be confused with disapproval or indifference. She remains defensive of her husband, sharing his belief that their family has been unfairly attacked. Deeply distrustful of the mainstream media, she is an avid reader of the Daily Mail online, tracking Mr. Trump’s coverage in the conservative British tabloid.

Mrs. Trump is particularly skeptical of the case by E. Jean Carroll , who won $5 million in damages in a trial accusing Mr. Trump of sexual abuse in the 1990s and defamation after he left the White House, according to two people familiar with her remarks. When Mrs. Trump saw coverage of her husband’s deposition in the case, she was livid at his legal team for failing to do more to raise objections. She has also privately questioned why Ms. Carroll could not recall the precise date of the alleged assault.

Still, Mrs. Trump believes that despite the legal peril, Mr. Trump could return to the White House next year. In private, she has expressed curiosity about Casey DeSantis , the wife of Mr. Trump’s chief rival, Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida. Ms. DeSantis is a close adviser to her husband and a regular presence at his events, and she has begun to campaign for him on her own. In one of her rare interviews, Mrs. Trump mused to Fox News about having a second chance at being first lady, saying she would “ prioritize the well-being and development of children ” if she reprised the role.

But she has not yet prioritized campaigning. Although she has expressed willingness to do events for her husband next year, she has so far refused his requests to join him on the stump.

“I don’t think it’s going to be anything like what we’ve seen with Casey DeSantis,” said Stephanie Grisham, a former Trump aide who quit on Jan. 6. “She’s not going to be throwing on jeans and walking in parades.”

Kellyanne Conway, a longtime Trump adviser who is also close with Mrs. Trump, said the former first lady was “all in” on her husband’s candidacy and remained his “most trusted and most transparent adviser.” Both Trumps, she said, have privately discussed “priorities” for a second term.

“I know few people as comfortable in their skin as Melania Trump,” said Ms. Conway, who is not working for the campaign. “She knows who she is and keeps her priorities in check. Melania keeps them guessing, and they keep guessing wrong.”

That air of mystery extends to the gated communities of her husband’s clubs. In Palm Beach, Mrs. Trump is not a part of the social circuit, said Lore Smith, a longtime Palm Beach real estate agent who is a frequent visitor to the club.

Unlike her modern predecessors, who attended barre or spinning classes, Mrs. Trump isn’t seen at the fitness center and isn’t known to have a trainer, according to other club regulars and former aides. She has long been a fan of days spent at the spa, but she is almost never spotted outside at the pool at either Mar-a-Lago or Bedminster, Mr. Trump's golf resort in New Jersey. Occasionally, she makes brief appearances at charity functions at Mar-a-Lago with her husband.

“They very much keep to themselves behind the confines of Mar-a-Lago,” Ms. Smith said.

Mrs. Trump remains closely involved with Barron’s education. He is enrolled in a private school in West Palm Beach and is beginning to look at colleges in New York.

Mrs. Trump is said to prefer the city to Mar-a-Lago or Bedminster. She has been spotted going to her hairdresser and entering and exiting Trump Tower, which she does through a special side entrance and a private elevator.

Outside the family residences, Mrs. Trump’s public schedule has been limited. She has done a handful of events, including collecting $500,000 in fees last year from the Log Cabin Republicans, a conservative group that supports L.G.B.T. rights, and Fix California, an elections organization founded by Richard Grenell, a former senior Trump administration official. Mr. Grenell declined to comment on her appearance at the events.

In February 2022, Mrs. Trump started “Fostering the Future,” a scholarship program for foster children aging out of the system. A person familiar with the program, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, would not offer details or disclose how many scholarships have been awarded, saying only that it was “more than two.” No charity with the name Fostering the Future or Be Best is registered in Florida or New York.

Michael Weitzman, the first recipient of one of the scholarships, said he received the funding for four years at Oral Roberts University through a mentor, who knew a friend involved with the Trumps. “He asked if going to college was still a dream of mine,” said Mr. Weitzman, who spent his childhood living in 12 foster homes. “He said that he might know somebody really rich who might want to pay for me to go.”

He did not fill out any kind of application but a day after the mentor floated the idea, he received an email from Mrs. Trump’s public relations team asking if he would participate in a Fox News interview with the former first lady, her first since leaving the White House. The scholarship was announced during the May 2022 interview, with Mr. Weitzman participating over Zoom. Mr. Weitzman, 26, said he had not had any interactions with Mrs. Trump since.

“I haven’t met her in person. I wondered often if I would and would love to,” he said. “I’m beyond grateful. There’s no reason that anybody should have done this for me.”

Mrs. Trump’s aides declined to discuss the details of her campaign plans, her charitable and business ventures and her views on her husband’s legal issues. Mr. Trump’s campaign declined to comment.

In many ways, Mrs. Trump’s post-White House life is an extension of her style as first lady.

From the start of her husband’s term, when she didn’t immediately move into the White House, Mrs. Trump often vacillated between two extremes: embracing her role or bucking all expectations associated with it.

One of her most memorable moments was made through a fashion statement. While returning from a visit to a Texas border town to meet detained migrant children, she wore a jacket emblazoned with the phrase, “I really don’t care. Do U?”

Much of her White House experience was marked by what people close to her described as disappointment and betrayal from friends, aides and even members of the Trump family. At times, her relationships with Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, Mr. Trump’s daughter and son-in-law, were strained, according to former aides. Since then, her former press secretary, Ms. Grisham, and a former aide and friend, Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, have written tell-all books depicting her as icy and disengaged from the role.

Those experiences pushed Mrs. Trump to retreat even further from the public, say people familiar with the family.

But that privacy may be hard to maintain under the scrutiny of a contested presidential primary and legal investigations.

Last week, Chris Christie criticized both Trumps for a $155,000 payment to Mrs. Trump from a super PAC aligned with her husband’s campaign. A representative for the super PAC said that Mrs. Trump was hired in 2021 for “design consulting,” including choosing tableware, arranging settings and picking floral arrangements.

“There’s grifting and then there’s Trump grifting,” Mr. Christie, the former New Jersey governor and most outspoken Trump critic in the 2024 Republican primary field, wrote on Twitter. “Undisputed champs.”

Most of her public profile, conducted largely through her social media accounts, is focused on selling a variety of digital trading cards. Her NFTs, or nonfungible tokens, include digital drawings of her eyes, a broad-brimmed hat worn during a state visit, White House Christmas ornaments and a blue rose intended to commemorate National Foster Care Month.

The majority of her tweets and Instagram posts directly promote the NFTs or a business called USA Memorabilia, which sells them. A day after Mr. Trump announced on his social media website Truth Social that he had received a target letter in the federal investigation into his efforts to thwart the transfer of power in 2020, Mrs. Trump’s only public comment was an announcement of a new “Man on the Moon” NFT collection.

A portion of her proceeds is donated, though her aides would not provide details about the amount given or specify the charity.

While first ladies often capitalize on the attendant fame, Mrs. Trump’s moneymaking venture is different from those of her predecessors, said Kate Andersen Brower, the author of “First Women: The Grace and Power of America’s Modern First Ladies.”

Michelle Obama was reportedly paid more than $60 million in a joint book deal with her husband, as well as commanding hundreds of thousands of dollars for speeches and signing a lucrative production deal with Netflix. Laura Bush and Hillary Clinton also sold their memoirs for millions. Their memoirs and paid speeches required the former first ladies to share some details about themselves, their views and their lives in the White House.

By simply selling images, Mrs. Trump reveals nothing.

That’s exactly how she likes it, Ms. Brower said.

“She’s the most obviously unknowable first lady,” she said of Mrs. Trump’s public persona. “There’s something radical about it. First ladies are expected to want to please people and I’m not sure she really cares.”

Maggie Haberman and Susan Beachy contributed reporting.

Lisa Lerer is a national political correspondent, covering campaigns, elections and political power. More about Lisa Lerer

Katie Rogers is a White House correspondent, covering life in the Biden administration, Washington culture and domestic policy. She joined The Times in 2014. More about Katie Rogers

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Where has Melania been? Donald Trump explains wife’s absence from the campaign trail

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Donald Trump has explained why wife Melania has been largely absent from his 2024 presidential campaign.

The former first lady was last seen on Easter Sunday after lunch at Mar-a-Lago with her teenage son Barron but has been almost entirely absent from both Mr Trump’s campaign events, and his multiple criminal and civil trials.

During the 2016 and 2020 campaigns, Ms Trump often stayed at home while Mr Trump was campaigning. In an interview with 20/20 in 2015 , she explained that she wanted to be there for Barron who was nine at the time.

After Mr Trump won the White House in 2016, Mrs Trump didn’t move from the family’s New York penthouse until June 2017.

The last election-related event that she attended with her husband was when he cast a vote for himself in Florida’s primary in February .

Ms Trump was asked then if she was going to campaign with her husband before the November election. She answered “stay tuned”.

Mr Trump has teased her return to the campaign trail for months but also defended her absence.

“She’s a private person, a great person, a very confident person, and she loves our country very much. She’ll be — at the appropriate time — she’ll be out there,” Mr Trump said during an interview with Meet the Press in September.

A source close to the first lady also told CNN in late March that Ms Trump determines when and in what way she will appear at political events. However as the election draws closer, it appears Ms Trump will be more visible.

Mrs Trump is reportedly attending a fundraiser in West Palm Beach this Saturday evening with her husband. She is also appearing at a Mar-a-Lago fundraiser for the Log Cabin Republicans on 20 April , according to Politico .

She previously attended events for the group, described as the “nation’s largest Republican organization dedicated to representing LGBT conservatives and allies” and another called “Fix California,” which describes itself as focused on “election integrity and voter engagement”.

The Independent has contacted the Trump campaign for comment.

Mr Trump told Megyn Kelly on her podcast in September that Mrs Trump “doesn’t need to be out there”.

Around the time of the Iowa caucuses, her absence inspired Trump detractors to post Melania “missing” posters . The posters included a photo of Ms Trump and the caption: “Have you seen this woman? Where is our First Lady? Why is Donald Trump hiding her? We miss her. Please call 561-832-2600 if found.”

Weeks ago, the Trump campaign flew a banner over the Iowa State Fair that said Be Likeable, Ron! Today, there’s scattered “Missing” flyers all over the rivalry Iowa game — where Trump, DeSantis & several other candidates will both appear. pic.twitter.com/Sv932ulqAr — Rachel Scott (@rachelvscott) September 9, 2023

One person even hired a plane to fly a banner reading “Where’s Melania?” over an Iowa State football game when Mr Trump was attending last September.

Mr Trump has also previously suggested that his wife staying out of the spotlight was his decision, telling Meet the Press that he wanted to "keep her away from [the campaign]".

“It’s so nasty and so mean," he said during the September interview.

Mrs Trump has had her own personal issues in recent months. Her mother, Amalija Knavs, died on 9 January after she fell “very ill,” according to Mr Trump. Ms Knavs’ cause of death has not been revealed.

Mrs Trump joined the other first ladies at the memorial service for former first lady Rosalynn Carter in November, and attended a Mar-a-Lago dinner for Hungarian authoritarian Viktor Orban last month .

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The Truth About Donald And Melania Trump's Life At Mar-A-Lago

Donald Trump's tumultuous time in the White House was marked not only by his policies, his trademark rallies, and his personal and professional scandals, but also by the lavish lifestyle that he maintained as president. Donald and his wife, Melania Trump, came to Washington, D.C. after leading extremely opulent lives, and proved very quickly that they would be keeping up with expectations. After all, life in the penthouse at Trump Tower and a vacation spot at the Mar-a-Lago beach club in Palm Beach, Florida are two spots that seem hard to give up. 

Despite the hustle and bustle of D.C., Donald and Melania took many quick getaways to Mar-a-Lago during his administration, their lavish Florida estate. And by the pictures, it's no secret as to why: the grounds are beautiful, the pools look amazing, and since it's situated in Florida, it's literally coated in sunshine. The former president spent so much time there during his time in office that the estate was dubbed "the winter White House."

So now that Donald and Melania are at Mar-a-Lago on a permanent basis, what does their life look like there? Strap in, because here's the truth about Donald and Melanie's life at Mar-a-Lago.

Donald and Melania Trump may throw lavish parties at Mar-a-Lago

Every extravagant party needs an extravagant venue, and that's a memo that Donald and Melania Trump have certainly gotten. Their lives at Mar-a-Lago have consisted of lavish events and celebrations, and it looks like that won't stop any time soon. As noted by the The Palm Beach Post , a large group of people gathered at Mar-a-Lago on New Year's Eve to ring in 2021. Despite the threats of the coronavirus pandemic and transmission risk between guests, people still congregated on the estate's lavish grounds to ring in the new year. 

Additionally, videos were posted to social media showing Mar-a-Lago party goers "mostly maskless and without social distancing," so it's safe to say that Donald and Melania's lives will continue to see lavish parties without any kind of precautions. According to  The New York Times , the party attendees included Donald Trump Jr.,  his girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle , and Rudolph Giuliani, "who was shown in online footage ballroom-dancing with a female partner to a rendition of New York, New York ." Time will tell just how crazy the Mar-a-Lago parties will be.

Donald and Melania Trump likely won't leave Mar-a-Lago often

A lot of us got used to staying at home in 2020 and 2021; we became accustomed to sweatpants and day-old pizza, the television on 24/7, and UberEats suggestions popping up on our phones around 6:30 every evening. However, unlike Donald and Melania Trump , we don't have a Florida estate and the Palm Beach area to wander around. But according to The New York Times , Donald has been known not to venture outside of Mar-a-Lago's property in the past, and given that his post-presidency has been plagued with impeachment and scandal, we can't imagine he'll be leaving the grounds any time soon. 

The Times also noted that Melania "tends to keep a low profile" while at Mar-a-Lago, not dissimilar to her low-key approach to being first lady ; so while the couple will most definitely indulge guests, the locals of Palm Beach will most likely not see them outside very often. As The Times put it, "in the Mar-a-Lago cocoon, the president is in his most comfortable mode, friends and allies say: playing the jocular host in front of an adoring crowd." Sounds like quite the lifestyle.

Donald Trump will likely play golf often at Mar-a-Lago

While in office, Donald Trump was known to often indulge in one of his favorite pastimes: golf. Despite criticism, he hit the green on many weekends, and even conducted some political business over golf games. And it looks like he'll be able to keep up his habits at Mar-a-Lago, because his new primary Palm Beach residence is just 15 minutes away from the Trump International Golf Club , as noted by The New York Time s . 

But the former president's favorite activity might be clouded by drama. As noted by Golf Week , a Palm Beach County official began the process of reviewing the county's contract with the Trump Organization, hoping to terminate the Trump International Golf Club lease. The chief assistant county attorney, Howard Falcon, told The Palm Beach Post that he "was asked by an unnamed county commissioner about whether the lease with Trump International Golf Club could be canceled," but maintains that he thinks the county cannot end its lease with Donald, "who pays $88,338 a month in rent for the property." So we'll see what happens.

Palm Beach is getting involved in Donald and Melania Trump's future at Mar-a-Lago

Donald Trump's future at Mar-a-Lago in his post-presidency was met with drama right away, and to be honest, we're not entirely shocked. As noted by The Washington Post , Donald signed an agreement in the '90s that changed the Mar-a-Lago estate from a primary residence into a private, membership based club. But doing so, it stopped Donald from being able to claim Mar-a-Lago as his primary residence (and he spent most of his time in New York, anyway). But after he lost the White House, Donald and his wife, Melania Trump, made it known that their sights were set on making Mar-a-Lago home — and the town of Palm Beach, Florida had some concerns. 

Specifically, Palm Beach's attorney recommended to the town council that they allow the Trumps to reside at Mar-a-Lago, all but forcing the council to come to an on-the-books conclusion. According to reports, "the legal opinion is the latest step in a year-long dispute that could force a decision by town officials who have been reluctant to take a formal position." Will the Trumps be allowed to stay permanently? Time will tell.

Mar-a-Lago is technically a downgrade from Donald and Melania Trump's former primary residence

By looking at the photos of the Mar-a-Lago estate, you can see that it's lavish, gorgeous, and over-the-top. The main building is stunning, the grounds look beautiful, there are pools and gardens, and the property literally sits on the water — what else could you ask for? Well, as noted by the The Palm Beach Post , staying at Mar-a-Lago permanently might be a tad disappointing for Donald and Melania Trump, as it's technically a downgrade from the Manhattan digs that they used to call home. Yes, a downgrade. 

Despite the renovations that have been done on Mar-a-Lago's private residence, it's "far smaller" than the penthouse floors that the Trumps used to live in at Trump Tower, their primary residence before moving to the White House. So why don't they just go back to Trump Tower? Let's just say that the city of New York and the Trumps don't exactly get along anymore. Looks like they'll just have to abandon the golden cherubs and the Central Park views from Trump Tower for the really shabby waterfront property they now live in. This is a time for sacrifice in their lives.

Donald and Melania Trump are longer granted this special circumstance at Mar-a-Lago

Here's a tidbit that many people might not know: air traffic can be diverted away from wherever the president of the United States is for security purposes — planes aren't even allowed in Washington D.C. airspace, and when they do , everyone goes into a panic. 

When he was president, Donald Trump often ventured down to Mar-a-Lago, and because of his role and in interest of security, planes were not allowed to fly over the estate — which is a big deal. According to the The Palm Beach Post , Mar-a-Lago is "directly under the main flight path of Palm Beach International Airport," so the air traffic is pretty substantial. But now that Donald no longer enjoys the privileges of being president, it looks like he's going to have to put up with the sound of planes landing in what can only be described as his backyard. And this isn't going to go over well — Donald once sued Palm Beach International Airport over the noise of the planes, but as the Post reported, "planes are expected to once again fly directly over the club." Someone go buy Donald some earplugs.

Donald and Melania Trump will likely throw Super Bowl parties at Mar-a-Lago

The Super Bowl is a big deal. Typically, the festive Sunday in February is accompanied by pigs in a blanket, a lot of chips and dips, wings and mozzarella sticks, cookies, drinks — oh, and football. And according to The New York Times , Donald and MelaniaTrump will most likely keep up the tradition of hosting an annual Super Bowl party at Mar-a-Lago in Donald's post-presidency. And while our Super Bowl Sundays consist of bulk foods that we got at Costco, his are made up of steak and lobster buffets — completely different worlds, really. 

Of course, this doesn't come as a surprise to anyone who's paid attention to Donald and his messaging around football. He owned the New Jersey Generals in the '80s, invested his energy into the short-lived United States Football League, and reportedly tried to convince his daughter, Ivanka Trump , to marry star quarterback Tom Brady . According to The New York Times , Donald has often joked that he "could have had Tom Brady" as a son-in-law. "Instead, I got Jared Kushner ," he has reportedly said. Ouch.

Donald and Melania Trump haven't experienced a warm welcome at Mar-a-Lago

It's always a gallant effort to try to get along with your neighbors, but making nice with the neighbors doesn't seem to be on Donald and Melania Trump's to-do list. According to  The Washington Post , the surrounding neighbors of Mar-a-Lago do not want the former president and first lady in their corner. In a letter sent to the town of Palm Beach, Florida, the immediate neighbors of the Mar-a-Lago property asserted that the Trumps "lost [their] legal right to live at Mar-a-Lago" because of Donald's agreement to not make the club his primary residence in the '90s. 

The lawyer for the Mar-a-Lago neighbors wrote in the letter that the Trumps should be notified that they cannot live on the property permanently, and should "avoid an embarrassing situation" before moving in. So why are the neighbors so adamant? Busy traffic, blocked streets, and the Trumps' history of not complying with county rules (there's a riveting story about a flagpole) are just a couple of the reasons. But given that Donald has ignored the requests of neighbors in the past, chances are he won't listen to their complaints.

Some members of Mar-a-Lago might leave the club

Mar-a-Lago serves as a membership club as well as the Donald and Melania Trump's residence. It boasts beautiful grounds, pools, dining experiences, and more, and many prominent people in the Palm Beach area have memberships. But in the days of his post-presidency, Donald might see some membership decline. According to the  Palm Beach Daily News , the membership fee skyrocketed to $200,000 after the 2016 election. Members also have to pay an additional yearly membership fee and have to meet a $2,000 minimum dining requirement. 

Here's an example of a membership gone wrong that illustrates the point. Jeff Greene, who ran for Florida's governorship, became a member in 2010 but quit in 2019. "I never loved going there," he told The New York Times . Unlike other businesses that don't seem to care if you come or go, Greene explained that Donald took it personally. "He went right at me, saying, 'I can't believe you quit the club.' He's figuring someone with plenty of money, why would they care about paying dues for a club?" 

No one's petty drama is worth putting up with, especially if it comes with a $200,000 price tag.

Donald and Melania Trump might not see each other often at Mar-a-Lago

During their time in the White House, Donald and Melania Trump kept their distance from each other. According to  Business Insider , Donald and Melania not only had separate bedrooms, but also lived on an entirely different floors; Melania will be able to keep that up, if she so chooses to, at Mar-a-Lago. As noted by Town & Country , the mansion features 128 rooms, so if they want to live apart, it seems like nothing is in Donald and Melania's way. 

Additionally, Mar-a-Lago isn't just made up by its lavish designs and hundreds of rooms. It sits on 20 acres of land, sandwiched between the intracoastal waterway and the Atlantic Ocean. According to Town & Country, Donald purchased the estate in 1985 for $5 million, which is about $12 million in 2021. "I have 24 acres in Palm Beach and nobody has anything like that," Trump said in 2014. "A big house is on one acre. I have 24. It's the great estate of Palm Beach." While he's technically wrong about that (Mar-a-Lago sits on 20 acres), the space will allow for him and Melania to keep their distance.

Donald and Melania Trump will have some Secret Service agents at Mar-a-Lago

Former presidents are granted Secret Service protection for life, so that will be a part of Donald and Melania's lives at Mar-a-Lago. As noted by  The Palm Beach Post , a "much smaller Secret Service detail" will watch over Donald and Melania. Additionally, their services may extend to Mar-a-Lago's 500 members, as well as events held on the estate grounds. 

But the scaled-back protection that Donald and Melania will receive at Mar-a-Lago might not be enough for the former president. As noted by The Washington Post , Donald "instructed that his family get the best security available in the world" for the six months following his departure from office "at no cost." According to people who were briefed on Donald's wishes, the former president "issued a directive to extend post-presidency Secret Service protection to his four adult children and two of their spouses, who were not automatically entitled to receive it." 

You know when your parents told you when you were a kid that "you'll take what you get and you'll like it" (usually referring to the vegetables we didn't want to eat)? Donald might want to implore such a mindset.

Donald and Melania Trump will be surrounded by Mar-a-Lago's opulent decorations

Donald and Melania Trump have become synonymous with a couple of different things — wealth, power, opulence, drama, expensive outfits , gold-plated everything — and it looks like their lavish reputations will follow them to Mar-a-Lago. In their new primary residence, the Trumps will get to enjoy some of the most opulent and outrageous decor, probably not to anyone's surprise. 

As noted by Town & Country , Donald paid an extra $3 million when he purchased Mar-a-Lago so he could acquire the property's antiques and furniture pieces (it was owned by heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post, and heiresses always have good taste, it seems). Here are some other details that will blow your mind: the estate has a 20,000 square foot ballroom that features $7 million worth of gold detailing. Donald also spent $100,000 just so he could have four Mar-a-Lago sinks plated in gold. 

If the estate is anything like the Trumps' penthouse in Trump Tower, there will be gold and lush fabrics and over the top everything everywhere.

Mar-a-Lago will bring in income for Donald and Melania Trump

Ethics concerns came into question when Donald Trump became president, in part because of the Trump Organization and his business dealings. He handed over the reins to his sons, Don Jr. and Eric Trump, but Donald still received a huge sum of money from Mar-a-Lago while he was in office; it looks like the estate will continue to generate revenue for him. 

As noted by Town & Country , Donald made $15.6 million from Mar-a-Lago in 2014 and $25.1 million from the estate during his first year as president. The Hill reported that Mar-a-Lago made Donald $21.4 million in 2019 — a slight drop from the two previous years — and was accompanied by the income Donald received from other Trump properties. 

Of course, Mar-a-Lago and several other Trump properties were closed in March of 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, but according to  NBC News , the club partially reopened to its members just two months later. Maybe Donald will experience a bit of a revenue drop due to the pandemic, but it looks like the club will be a huge source of his income in his post-presidency life.

Supporters of Donald and Melania Trump will hold vigils there

If Trump supporters are known for anything, it's their dedication to Donald Trump. His rallies were often shown on the news and in photographs as wildly enthusiastic events, with supporters wearing Trump gear, waving Trump flags, holding Trump signs, and going to all kinds of lengths to show their dedication. And according to  The Palm Beach Post , it looks like some of that dedication will follow Donald and Melania Trump to Mar-a-Lago. 

Many of Donald's supporters lined the streets of Palm Beach when he arrived after departing from Washington, D.C. the day of President Joe Biden's inauguration. Some of those supporters told the  Post that they vowed to "continue their vigils" outside of Mar-a-Lago — that's a whole different level of dedication if we've ever witnessed it. 

Of course, it will be a little bit more difficult for Trumpers to get a glimpse of their beloved former president. Donald's motorcade in his post-presidency life at Mar-a-Lago will be a lot smaller, and his schedule will no longer be public. So they'll really have to stand outside and hope for the best.

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Melania Trump

Who Is Melania Trump?

Melania was born Melanija Knavs, Germanized to Melania Knauss on April 26, 1970, in Novo Mesto, Slovenia (then part of communist Yugoslavia). Her father was a car dealer and her mother was a designer for children's clothing. She grew up in a modest home with her younger sister and later discovered she had an older half brother, whom her father had from a previous relationship.

Modeling Career

Melania began modeling at age 16, and two years later she signed on with an agency in Milan. She enrolled at the University of Ljubljana but dropped out after one year to pursue her modeling career.

In her early days of modeling, Melania worked in Milan and Paris, before moving to New York in 1996. There she gained steady work, working with well-known photographers like Patrick Demarchelier and Helmut Newton, and landing covers on magazines such as Harper's Bazaar (Bulgaria), Vanity Fair (Italy), GQ (for which she posed nude in January 2000) and the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue .

Marriage to Donald Trump

Melania met her future husband Donald at a New York fashion party in 1998. Although she first refused to date him, the couple eventually began establishing a relationship and were engaged in 2004. The following year they married in a lavish Palm Beach, Florida, ceremony, with celebrity attendees including Shaquille O'Neal , Barbara Walters , Kelly Ripa , Matt Lauer, Katie Couric , former President Bill Clinton and then New York Senator Hillary Clinton .

In 2006, Melania gave birth to Barron William Trump. Their son is husband Donald's fifth child. That same year she also became a U.S. citizen.

Presidential Campaign Trail

When Donald announced his intentions to make a 2016 presidential bid for the White House, the normally private Melania was pushed into the national spotlight along with her past modeling work, some of which was considered racy. One of the first controversial images that began circulating online was her 2000 British GQ spread that had her lying naked on a fur blanket.

The controversy didn't stop there: In July 2016, Melania gave a speech at the Republican National Convention, from which some passages were found to be identical to Michelle Obama 's 2008 Democratic National Convention speech. Initially claiming she wrote the speech, Melania was lambasted by the media and the public for plagiarism.

Shortly thereafter, Melania staff writer Meredith McIver took responsibility for the gaffe, claiming she accidentally included part of Obama's speech in Melania's talking points. McIver issued the following statement explaining what transpired:

"In working with Melania on her recent first lady speech, we discussed many people who inspired her and messages she wanted to share with the American people. A person she has always liked is Michelle Obama. Over the phone, she read me some passages from Mrs. Obama’s speech as examples. I wrote them down and later included some of the phrasing in the draft that ultimately became the final speech."

Not long after, more controversy followed. On July 30, 2016, the New York Post published nude photos of a then 25-year-old Melania, including one in which she lay in bed with another woman. Many of the photos were published for a men's French magazine that is no longer in circulation.

Discussing the nude photos, Donald told The Post, “Melania was one of the most successful models and she did many photo shoots, including for covers and major magazines. This was a picture taken for a European magazine prior to my knowing Melania. In Europe, pictures like this are very fashionable and common.”

In November, Melania delivered a rare speech on the campaign trail outlining how fighting cyberbullying would be a priority for her if she were to become first lady. “We need to teach our youth American values: Kindness, honesty, respect, compassion, charity, understanding, cooperation,” she said. News outlets were quick to point out the irony that her husband was known for his use of the social media platform Twitter to insult opponents.

On November 8, 2016, Donald won the majority of electoral college votes and was elected the 45th president of the United States in a stunning defeat of Hillary. With her husband’s victory, Melania became the first foreign-born U.S. first lady since Louisa Adams, John Quincy Adams ’s wife, who was born in London.

As Donald prepared for his transition to power, he told reporters that Melania and their son Barron would stay in New York City while he moved into the White House, allowing Barron to finish the year at his private school on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. In June 2017, Melania and Barron finally joined the President in the White House.

An early attempt to use the first lady platform for public good generated attention for the wrong reasons: In September, Melania sent a package of Dr. Seuss books to one deserving school in each state as part of National Read-a-Book Day. However, the gift was spurned by a Massachusetts elementary school librarian, who decried both the selection of her school and the choice of Dr. Seuss as a "tired and worn ambassador for children's literature."

The first lady hoped to achieve better results through her passion for combating bullying. In October, she made a surprise visit with Education Secretary Betsy DeVos to Orchard Lake Middle School in Michigan, as part of the #NoOneEatsAlone initiative. "I always believe that you need to treat each other with respect, and kindness and compassion," she told the students.

The following month, the secretive first lady was profiled in Vanity Fair . According to the article, it was Melania who pushed a waffling Donald into announcing his candidacy for president, knowing that he would regret the missed opportunity if he didn't. On the flip side, she supposedly never expected to find herself in the White House. "This isn’t something she wanted and it isn’t something he ever thought he’d win," said one longtime friend of the couple. “She didn’t want this come hell or high water. I don’t think she thought it was going to happen."

Whether or not she ever intended to live in the White House, the first lady went all-out for her first holiday season as a resident there. She publicly revealed her Christmas decorations on November 27, 2017, showcasing her Balsam fir trees draped with "icicles" and trimmed with glass ornaments emblazoned with the seal of each state and territory. The display reportedly came together with the assistance of 150 volunteers from 29 states.

“The President, Barron, and I are very excited for our first Christmas in the White House,” Melania said in a statement. “As with many families across the country, holiday traditions are very important to us. I hope when visiting the People’s House this year, visitors will get a sense of being home for the holidays.”

Policy Focus and Controversies

In January 2018, Melania hired 27-year-old Reagan Thompson, previously an executive assistant on the National Security Council and adviser to Congressman turned CIA director Mike Pompeo , to serve as her policy director. A spokesperson said the new hire would help prepare and roll out the first lady's official platform in the coming months.

The move came shortly after the publication of the explosive book Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House , which described Melania as an unwilling participant in her husband's campaign who broke down in tears the night he was elected. The first lady was reportedly angered by that account and instructed her staff to push back against the book's claims.

More controversy soon surfaced with a report that Donald had been involved with an adult film star a decade earlier, with the starlet allegedly paid to keep quiet just before the 2016 election. The first lady subsequently canceled a trip to attend the World Economic Forum in Switzerland with her husband and kept a low profile for several days, prompting speculation of a rift between the two. Her spokesperson eventually broke the ice by slamming the "salacious & flat-out false reporting" on Twitter, and Melania followed by confirming that she would attend the president's State of the Union address on January 30.

On May 7, 2018, Melania unveiled her platform, "Be Best," with a focus on three key objectives: well-being, fighting opioid abuse and positivity on social media. "As a mother and as first lady, it concerns me that in today's fast-paced and ever-connected world, children can be less prepared to express or manage their emotions and oftentimes turn to forms of destructive or addictive behavior such as bullying, drug addiction or even suicide," she said. "I feel strongly that as adults we can and should be best at educating our children about the importance of a healthy and balanced life."

While Be Best's progress was slowed by the departure of the East Wing's policy director in July, Melania circled back to the initiative and spoke at an August 20 conference about preventing cyberbullying. When critics asked how she could address the matter with a straight face on the same morning her husband lashed out at special counsel Robert Mueller and former CIA Director John Brennan on Twitter, a spokesperson said the first lady was "aware of the criticism, but it will not deter her from doing what she feels is right."

Border Enforcement

In June 2018, the first lady weighed in on the controversial issue of children being separated from their parents after illegally crossing the Mexican border. Although her husband had blamed Democrats for a law that supposedly mandated such actions, it was part of Attorney General Jeff Sessions ' zero-tolerance policy toward preventing illegal entry into the country.

"Mrs. Trump hates to see children separated from their families and hopes both sides of the aisle can finally come together to achieve successful immigration reform," she said in a statement through her spokesperson, Stephanie Grisham. "She believes we need to be a country that follows all laws, but also a country that governs with heart."

A few days later, Melania made an unannounced visit to Upbring New Hope Children's Shelter in McAllen, Texas, to tour the facility and meet with children and staff. However, the visit itself was eclipsed by her decision to wear a jacket emblazoned with the message "I REALLY DON'T CARE, DO U?" before leaving and again after returning to Andrews Air Force Base.

Her spokesperson downplayed the significance of the jacket, insisting there was no hidden message, but the president said it was directed at the "fake news media," tweeting, "Melania has learned how dishonest they are, and she truly no longer cares!"

Health Scares

On May 14, 2018, Melania underwent kidney surgery at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center near Washington, D.C. "Melania Trump underwent an embolization procedure to treat a benign kidney issue. She will likely remain there for the duration of the week,” her office said in a statement. “The first lady looks forward to a full recovery so she can continue her work on behalf of children everywhere.”

Although she was out of the hospital after five days, the first lady continued to lie low in the following weeks, sparking more concern about her well-being. In early June, her spokesperson said that Melania would not be joining her husband at the G7 summit in Quebec that week and there were "no plans" for her to travel to Singapore to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un later in the month.

On October 2, 2020, President Trump revealed that he and wife Melania had both tested positive for COVID-19. Son Barron was also tested and initially tested negative, but it was revealed weeks later that a second test came back positive.

Immigration Issues

In early 2018, with the administration aiming to overhaul the nation's immigration laws, Melania's earlier actions as a foreigner seeking to live and work in the United States came under scrutiny. She had been granted a green card for permanent residency in March 2001 through the EB-1 program, nicknamed the "Einstein visa" due to its allocation to top academics, business leaders, Oscar-winning actors and others who demonstrate "extraordinary ability." Some critics questioned whether she was deserving of that designation, though others suggested she easily qualified for EB-1 approval.

In August 2018, it was reported that Melania's parents, Viktor and Amalija, had been granted U.S. citizenship. It was also revealed that the first lady had sponsored them for their green cards, a process at odds with the president's proposal of a "merit-based" system that sought to curb sponsorship for family members.

In December 2019, Melania was the subject of an unauthorized biography, Free, Melania , by CNN White House reporter Kate Bennett. The book delved into the first lady's relationships with her husband and step-daughter Ivanka , and provided insight into some of her headline-grabbing moments, like her Obama-inspired speech at the 2016 Republican National Convention.

In early 2020, as the president tried to steer the country through the major health crisis of the coronavirus outbreak, the first lady offered her two cents by urging the use of face masks and presenting suggestions for family activities via Twitter. In April, she welcomed Grisham back to her staff following the latter's nine-month tenure as White House press secretary.

Leaving the White House

While Donald's presidency came to a tumultuous close with the deadly U.S. Capitol riot of January 6, 2021, Melania sought to wind down her days as first lady on a positive note.

"The promise of this nation belongs to all of us," she said in a farewell message , posted shortly before the start of the Joe Biden administration. "Together, as one national family, we can continue to be the light of hope for future generations and carry on America's legacy of raising our nation to greater heights through our spirit of courage, goodness and faith."

Other Projects

In 2010, Melania launched a jewelry line, as well as a skincare line. She has appeared in an Aflac commercial, co-hosted on The View and appeared on her husband's reality show, Celebrity Apprentice .

Multilingual

Melania is said to be fluent in the Slovenian, English, French, Serbian and German languages, with other outlets reporting that she speaks Italian, as well.

QUICK FACTS

• Birth Year: 1970
• Birth date: April 26, 1970
• Birth City: Novo Mesto
• Birth Country: Slovenia
• Gender: Female
• Best Known For: Melania Trump is the wife of Donald Trump, who was the 45th president of the United States.
• Astrological Sign: Taurus

We strive for accuracy and fairness.If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us !

CITATION INFORMATION

• Article Title: Melania Trump Biography
• Author: Biography.com Editors
• Website Name: The Biography.com website
• Url: https://www.biography.com/history-culture/melania-trump
• Access Date:
• Publisher: A&E; Television Networks
• Last Updated: April 14, 2021
• Original Published Date: August 1, 2016

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Ex-Boyfriend of Donald Trump's Wife Melania Says She Was Never a 'Typical Slovenian Girl'

Melania Trump's ex-boyfriend describes how he met Melania in her hometown.

— -- Melania Trump was not a typical Slovenian girl, her former boyfriend Jure Zorcic told ABC News in an interview.

"She wanted to live abroad, in Italy, France, a life of fashion," Zorcic said, adding: "She was very fashionable."

But there were no talks about going the U.S: "I think it was very far from our minds at that time," he said.

"We met each other like in a movie," said Zorcic. "It was a hot summer day, in between wars in Slovenia [in 1991]. It was the beginning of a new political era for us, the city was empty, blocked by the army."

A Glimpse of Melania Trump's Childhood in Slovenia

He continued: "I was on my motorbike, and she has been walking down a street. As I passed by her, I had a moment and thought, 'Wow, who is this girl? She is so beautiful, I must turn back and follow her.'"

Zorcic stopped his motorbike, they started talking, and he took her for coffee, he recalled.

The couple dated for several months and spent summer days by the Croatian sea with a group of friends. Despite the brief time they spent together, Zorcic remembers Melania fondly. "It was a bit of shock when I met her," he said. "She is very special, that's the truth."

Zorcic added: "I was impressed by her beauty from the very first moment. She was very nicely dressed, and her behavior was classy. She was tall, had long hair across her face -- I could hardly see her eyes -- such style!"

He said she was wearing a full leather outfit and described it as "the most fashionable piece" he had ever seen.

Zorcic was surprised when Melania suddenly left Slovenia. After a few years of living in Paris and Milan, the young model moved to New York City. "She told me she had an offer with a hair care company, for a campaign -- that's why she went," he said.

Zorcic met Melania in New York in 2000 and described how surprised he was that his former sweetheart spoke to him in English rather then in Slovenian. "I asked her: did you forget that you are Slovenian?"

"She told me she spent her time travelling between New York and Fort Lauderdale in Florida and that she would never go back to Slovenia," he said.

Melania wed Donald Trump in 2005. "I think her marriage to Trump was fate," Zorcic added. "Nobody believed 20 years ago that she would live at the top of the world, on Fifth Avenue in Trump Tower -- even her!"

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Melania Trump made an appearance on the 4th night of the Republican National Convention. Here's a timeline of her 26-year relationship with Donald Trump.

• Donald and Melania Trump met in 1998 and dated on and off until getting married in 2005.
• In 2006, Melania gave birth to their son, Barron, who is Donald's fifth child. 
• The couple was the center of attention when Donald was president from 2016 to 2020.

Former President Donald Trump and his wife, Melania , met back in 1998 and have been married since 2005.

Here's a complete timeline of their relationship, from their first meeting to their time together in the White House.

September 1998: They met at a party thrown by their mutual friend Paolo Zampolli.

When they first met in September 1998, Melania Knauss was working as a model in New York after immigrating to the US from Slovenia in 1996.

According to Vanity Fair, Trump and Knauss first crossed paths while attending a party — thrown by their mutual friend and co-owner of Metropolitan Models, Paolo Zampolli — at New York City's Kit Kat Club during Fashion Week.

1999: Trump and his second wife, Marla Maples, finalized their divorce.

Trump and his second wife , Marla Maples, finalized their divorce in 1999 — just after Trump and Knauss first crossed paths — but they'd been separated since 1997.

Per the New York Post, Maples told The Telegraph, "Donald was never the man I wanted to marry. He and his world were alien to me … I'm so happy to be away from Donald and I'm just trying to move as far away as I can."

November 9, 1999: The couple did a controversial interview on "The Howard Stern Show."

In November 1999, Trump did a phone interview on "The Howard Stern Show." The conversation quickly turned personal as Knauss was brought on the phone, and the couple started openly discussing their sex life with the host.

Trump was quiet for much of the interview while Stern grilled Knauss about what she was wearing and asked if she was nude — to which she responded, "Almost."

January 2000: They broke up briefly, and Trump sent Knauss well wishes in a public statement.

Reports of a breakup circulated in early 2000, and Trump himself confirmed the split to New York Times reporter James Barron on January 13 at a party celebrating the Miss USA pageant.

He told the reporter, "Melania is an amazing woman, a terrific woman, a great woman and she will be missed."

April 2004: Trump asked Knauss to marry him.

Trump proposed to Knauss in 2004 with a 15-carat ring valued at $1.5 million dollars, which he got at half price, according to The New York Times.

Of their engagement, the future Mrs. Trump told the New York Post, "It was a great surprise. We are very happy together."

January 22, 2005: They got married in Palm Beach, Florida, and celebrated at Mar-a-Lago estate.

The two tied the knot in Palm Beach, Florida, on January 22, 2005, and hosted the reception at Donald's Mar-a-Lago estate.

Melania reportedly wore a $100,000 couture gown designed by John Galliano for Christian Dior, according to The Kansas City Star.

Several celebrities were in attendance among the 500 guests, including the Clintons and Barbara Walters, as well as Billy Joel and Tony Bennett, who both sang at the reception.

May 17, 2005: They made their television debut as a married couple on "Larry King Live."

A few months after their wedding, the couple appeared on "Larry King Live." They discussed everything from their first meeting to their relationship dynamic, and Melania noted that she and Donald were a great match right from the start.

"It was a great chemistry and energy. We had a great time and start [sic] to talk ... Something was there right away," she said.

Donald added, "We just have a really good relationship."

March 20, 2006: They welcomed their son, Barron, together.

Barron William Trump was born on March 20, 2006.

He's Melania's only child and Donald's fifth, with his closest half-sibling, Tiffany, almost 13 years his senior.

June 16, 2015: Nine years later, Donald announced his candidacy for US president.

After years of teasing about running for president, Donald officially announced his candidacy at Trump Tower in New York City on June 16, 2015.

His daughter Ivanka introduced him on stage while he descended down an escalator with Melania.

During his speech, he made a number of statements regarding his agenda, including building a wall along America's border with Mexico.

November 2, 2016: Melania made her first solo campaign speech.

One day before the presidential election in 2016, the future first lady made her first solo speech at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.

She was introduced by future Vice President Mike Pence's wife, Karen Pence, and spoke of her husband's goals as president as well as her own immigration story.

January 20, 2017: They had their first dance as FLOTUS and POTUS at the Inaugural Ball.

Following President Trump's inauguration ceremony, the couple did their first dance at the Inaugural Ball to Frank Sinatra's "My Way."

June 11, 2017: Melania and Barron joined Donald in the White House months after the inauguration.

Once President Trump was officially inaugurated, he moved from New York to the White House in Washington, DC. But in a break from tradition, Melania and Barron didn't join him for months. 

They officially moved into the White House on June 11, and Melania tweeted a picture of her view of the Washington Monument to celebrate .

January 12, 2018: Reports of an affair between the newly elected president and Stormy Daniels broke.

In 2018, reports of an affair and payoff between President Trump and adult-film star Stormy Daniels broke.

According to The Wall Street Journal , a lawyer for Trump reportedly arranged a $130,000 payment to Daniels a month before the 2016 election "as part of an agreement that precluded her from publicly discussing an alleged sexual encounter with Mr. Trump."

According to Daniels, the affair occurred in July 2006, soon after Barron was born.

October 12, 2018: Melania opened up about her marriage and role as the first lady in an interview.

The first lady sat down with ABC reporter Tom Llamas for a tell-all interview.

When Llamas asked, "Do you love your husband?" Melania simply replied, "Yes. We are fine. Yes."

He also probed about the president's reported affair, and Melania said she doesn't think much about it since she has "much more important things to think about and to do."

August 16, 2020: Melania appeared to brush her husband's hand away while descending the steps of Air Force One.

When the president and first lady exited Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, Melania appeared to brush her husband away as he attempted to take her hand twice on their way down the stairs. 

Similar rebuffs occurred when they were boarding Marine One in February 2018 and during a press event in April 2018.

But this time, some commentators conceded that she could've been holding down her dress in the windy conditions. 

October 2, 2020: They both tested positive for COVID-19.

In the midst of the 2020 election campaign trail, the president and the first lady both tested positive for COVID-19. Their son Barron also tested positive along with several members of the White House staff .

November 2, 2020: Melania gave her final campaign speech before the election.

The day before the 2020 presidential election, Melania gave a solo campaign speech  in Huntersville, North Carolina.

In the speech, she advocated for her husband's efforts when it came to the coronavirus pandemic and repeated President Trump's messaging around law and order while slamming presidential candidate Joe Biden .

The next day, she cast her vote for her husband in Palm Beach, Florida. 

January 2021: The couple moved to Mar-a-Lago after exiting the White House.

As President Biden was sworn into office at the beginning of 2021, the Turmps relocated to their Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Florida. 

April 4, 2023: Melania didn't join her husband for his arraignment in New York.

When Donald attended his April arraignment in New York City Melania did not appear to be present . 

The former first lady was also noticeably missing during Donald's post-arraignment speech at Mar-a-Largo later that day. 

April 26, 2024: Donald wished his wife a happy birthday before entering court for his New York trial.

Before entering the courtroom for his New York criminal trial, Donald paused in front of a group of journalists and wished his wife a happy birthday . 

"It'd be nice to be with her, but I'm at a courthouse for a rigged trial," he said. 

April 27, 2024: Melania returned to the campaign trail.

Melania hadn't been present for much of Donald's 2024 presidential campaign since he announced he was running again in 2022.

But she reportedly returned to the campaign trail for a private Log Cabin Republican event in West Palm Beach. 

July 18, 2024: Melania Trump appears on the fourth night of the Republican National Convention ahead of Donald Trump's speech

Melania, who has largely stayed off the campaign trail, appeared on the fourth night of the Republican National Convention ahead of Donald Trump's speech. During the speech, he talked about the attempted assassination and formally accepted the GOP nomination for president. He also thanked Melania for the letter  she posted publicly after the assassination attempt, in which she called for unity.

This story was originally published in November 2018 and most recently updated on July 18, 2024. 

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