Your support helps us to tell the story
Former First Lady Melania Trump teased the release of her upcoming memoir in an intense black-and-white video, emphasizing she feels she has a “responsibility to clarify the facts” after her profile was launched into the public eye as the wife of Donald Trump.
Despite being a “private person,” she issued a rare public statement to promote her forthcoming memoir, titled Melania — set to be released on September 24 — just two months before the 2024 presidential election.
In a video posted to X on Thursday, Melania Trump said writing the book “has been a deeply personal and reflective journey” for her. “As a private person who has often been the subject of public scrutiny and misrepresentation, I feel a responsibility to clarify the facts. I believe it is important to share my perspective. The truth,” she said.
The black-and-white video, set to dramatic orchestral music, features clips of the former First Lady embracing or helping children interspersed with images of her modeling career, important moments with her family, and the former first lady alongside her husband at various presidential events.
Although Thursday’s video highlighted photos with Donald Trump — her appearances with her husband have become an infrequent occurrence as of late.
The former first lady rarely accompanies Trump on the campaign trail. She only made a brief appearance at the Republican convention in Milwaukee in July, and did not deliver any remarks in support of her husband’s candidacy.
She was rarely seen with her husband during his presidency and delayed moving into the White House until June 2017 — five months after her husband was sworn in — so their son, Barron Trump, could finish school in New York City.
Melania Trump was often rumored — but never proven — to have spent most of her time in Potomac, Maryland, at a suburban home where her parents resided when she and Donald Trump were in the White House.
Mary Jordan, a Washington Post journalist who authored an unauthorized biography of Melania Trump called The Art of Her Deal: The Untold Story of Melania Trump, told Axios that the former First Lady might not set foot in the White House at all if her husband succeeds in winning a second term.
Instead, Jordan suggested she would divide her time between the Trump residences in Palm Beach, Florida, and New York City, where their son is starting college this fall.
These claims support rumors that swirled in July that Melania cut a “deal” with her husband about reducing her first lady duties, should he take back the White House in November.
“Melania does what Melania wants,” she said.
Social media users did not take kindly to the video teaser she released ahead of her book’s debut.
“I really don’t care. Do u?” the Republicans Against Trump account commented, referring to Melania’s infamous jacket emblazoned with those same words.
“No one cares,” another user wrote.
“The truth,” another user wrote, along with a photo of Donald Trump smiling next to porn star Stormy Daniels. In May, Daniels testified that she and the former president had an affair in 2006, while he was married to Melania.
This isn’t the first time Melania has received backlash pertaining to her forthcoming book. Many have already judged the book by its cover, as some thought it seemed a little too familiar.
The Melania cover design - her name written in capital letters in white text, centered on a plain black background - closely resembles that of the Chanel book.
One X user wrote at the time: “If you were wondering who Melania’s book was going to copy from, here you go. She’s decided to rip-off Chanel.”
Others similarly accused Melania of copying Chanel, resurfacing allegations from 2016 that she copied parts of Michelle Obama’s Democratic National Convention speech and used them for her own remarks at the Republican National Convention.
“Did Melania copy a Chanel book cover for her ‘Melania’ memoir? I don’t care really, but it’s fun to point out. Melania had no problem plagiarizing Michelle Obama’s speech, so stealing a book cover isn’t a big reach,” author David Stone said.
