Donald Trump Nabs the Critical Endorsement of His Wife

In the same tenor of an AI bot programmed to signal official approval, Melania makes her “support” official.

AP

Fight disinformation: Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.

Donald Trump may have forgotten her birthday in between facing 34 felony charges related to allegedly paying off a porn actress he slept with four months after giving birth to their son. But Melania Trump is once again showcasing an extraordinary ability to ignore all that hideousness, telling Fox News that Donald Trump’s reelection campaign has her “support.”

“He has my support, and we look forward to restoring hope for the future and leading America with love and strength,” Melania said in a new interview. She continued, “My husband achieved tremendous success in his first administration, and he can lead us toward greatness and prosperity once again.” 

The endorsement follows months of curious absence on the campaign trail as well as Trump’s surrender in New York last month, prompting many to once again wonder: Does Melania hate her husband? Her latest remarks, which carried the same tenor of an AI bot programmed to signal official approval, do not answer that question. But they do prompt further speculation about what she may have been able to extract in exchange for the public support. 

Should Trump make it back to the White House, Melania said it would be a “privilege” to serve as first lady again, a role which she would use to “prioritize the well-being and development of children.” That ambition, of course, doesn’t square with what we saw the first time around, including Melania’s hatred for Christmas and wearing a jacket with the message “I really don’t care. Do u?” to visit migrant children detained at the border.

“My focus would continue to be creating a safe and nurturing space for children to learn, grow, and thrive,” she told Fox News. “If additional problems arise, I will take the time to study them and understand their root causes.” 

I’d urge the former first lady to blink twice. But then I remember: Despite evidence suggesting she despises her husband, Melania’s proven a willing, if not enthusiastic, player in his awfulness too.

DONALD TRUMP & DEMOCRACY

Mother Jones was founded to do journalism differently. We stand for justice and democracy. We reject false equivalence. We go after stories others don’t. We’re a nonprofit newsroom, because the kind of truth-telling investigations we do doesn’t happen under corporate ownership.

And we need your support like never before, to fight back against the existential threats American democracy faces. Fundraising for nonprofit media is always a challenge, and we need all hands on deck right now. We have no cushion; we leave it all on the field.

It’s reader support that enables Mother Jones to report the facts that are too difficult, expensive, or inconvenient for other news outlets to uncover. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

payment methods

DONALD TRUMP & DEMOCRACY

Mother Jones was founded to do journalism differently. We stand for justice and democracy. We reject false equivalence. We go after stories others don’t. We’re a nonprofit newsroom, because the kind of truth-telling investigations we do doesn’t happen under corporate ownership.

And we need your support like never before, to fight back against the existential threats American democracy faces. Fundraising for nonprofit media is always a challenge, and we need all hands on deck right now. We have no cushion; we leave it all on the field.

It’s reader support that enables Mother Jones to report the facts that are too difficult, expensive, or inconvenient for other news outlets to uncover. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

payment methods

We Recommend

Latest

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Get our award-winning magazine

Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.

Subscribe

Support our journalism

Help Mother Jones' reporters dig deep with a tax-deductible donation.

Donate