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Melania Trump is unlikely to take up the role of full-time first lady if her husband wins a second term as president, according to a report.
A Trumpworld insider told Page Six that the Slovenian former model has cut a deal with Donald Trump that if he takes back the White House in November she would not have to be on first lady duty 24/7.
The couple’s son Barron Trump, 18, has just graduated from high school and is expected to attend New York University in the fall.
Ultimately, Melania believes she can be a “hands-on mother and first lady at the same time,” the insider told Page Six.
“She does not want a non-stop schedule of events in the White House, and makes the point she can be both a hands-on mother and First Lady at the same time.
“Donald is close to Barron, but isn’t going to be tossing footballs with him when he’s the president and the head of the free world. Donald has already agreed to this, and feels that mothers and parents across the country will understand Melania’s devotion to their son,” they added.
“Donald trusts Melania to bring up their son the same way he trusted Ivana to bring up their children… Donald feels it worked for Ivanka, Eric and Don Jr.”
Instead of full-time duties as the spouse of the president, Melania plans to split her time between Washington, DC, and New York.
“She’s a hands-on mother, and is already planning to spend part of every month — and potentially every week — in NYC,” a Trumpworld insider told Page Six.
The insider added that Melania feels “safe” in New York City and in Trump Tower.
“It’s Barron’s home, and that’s why she wants him to go to school in NYC,” they said. “She can provide both emotional and physical support by being close. Everyone remembers how she delayed moving to Washington DC until Barron finished school.”
After Trump won the 2016 presidential election and was inaugurated in January 2017, Melania delayed moving into the White House with Barron for another five months to allow her son to finish the school year uninterrupted.
But despite the safety and comfort she feels in New York, Melania is still concerned about the attention her 18-year-old son may face attending college in the city if his father is president, the insider said.
“Barron has never been completely on his own before — and with the added stress of him being both a freshman in college and potentially the son of a president in a predominantly Democratic city, [Melania] wants to be close… The added attention he’ll get if his father is president worries Melania who is also concerned about reaction at his school over Barron’s ever-present Secret Service [detail],” they said, adding that the former first lady is an “extremely protective” mother.
“Melania is an extremely protective mother and even pushed back on the idea that Barron would serve as a Republican delegate to the [Republican National Convention] from Florida.”
In May, it was announced that Barron would serve as a Florida delegate nominating his father as the official Republican presidential candidate alongside his older siblings at the party’s national convention.
However, days later, Melania’s office released a statement announcing that Barron would not be taking part.
“While Barron is honored to have been chosen as a delegate by the Florida Republican Party, he regretfully declines to participate due to prior commitments,” the statement said.
It would have marked the first time the youngest member of the Trump family has been directly involved in politics.
Earlier this week, a number of “Melania-ologists” told Axios it is unlikely Melania will to return to Washington, DC, if her husband wins the presidency.
“Melania does what Melania wants,” Mary Jordan, a Washington Post associate editor and author of the unauthorised Melania biography The Art of Her Deal (2020), said, adding that Melania “stand(s) out in history from any other first lady,” because she sees the role as “unelected, not paid” and therefore not something to which she feels compelled to commit.
The former first lady has barely been seen in public since leaving the White House in January 2021, and has opted not to take part in rallies and campaign events with her husband, or even support him at his criminal hush money trial with him.
When asked about his wife’s absence in February, Trump told Fox News host Laura Ingraham that Melania is a “private person” who is focused on their family.
“You know, a lot of first ladies would go out — they want to be everywhere. They get angry at their husband because he’s not introducing them,” Trump said. “If I didn’t introduce Melania, she’d be very happy about it. She’s just a different kind of a person.”
