What we have all witnessed since the day Donald J. Trump was sworn in as the 45th President of the United States is criminal, and what I have personally experienced since the day he was elected on Nov. 8, 2016, is shocking, awful, disheartening and shameful. Every single MAGA mob rioter who stormed the U.S. Capitol did so “at the direction of, and in coordination with” President Trump, and it was an assault on human life and our great democracy. Unfortunately, our president and first lady have little, if any, regard for either.
Everyone around them has stoked and massaged their egos and wittingly agreed to the falsehoods and poisonous lies, veiled as truths, that built this house of mirrors. I take responsibility for being Melania’s enabler, and her using me became the basis of our friendship. I can’t believe how blind I was to the depth of her deception and lack of common decency.
I wish I could say I was shocked by President Trump's actions, but sadly I can not, or say I don’t comprehend Melania’s silence and inactions, but pathetically, they are both expected. Melania knows how to “Be Best” at standing up and reading from a teleprompter and not from the heart. She and her husband lack character, and have no moral compass. Although my intentions to support the first lady in the rollout of her initiatives were always pure, I’m disheartened and ashamed to have worked with Melania.
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It is our moral imperative to instill in our children the skill set needed to embrace values of empathy and communication that are at the core of kindness, mindfulness, integrity, and leadership, all of which instill positive feelings of mutual respect. We all know that our children learn by example, and it goes without saying, it begins at home. Melania told me boldly, “Look, I know what the truth is, and it doesn’t need to be explained. Some things don’t need to be dignified with an answer.” As I said in my book, Melania and Me: The Rise and Fall of My Friendship with the First Lady, “A Trump is a Trump is a Trump.”
Throughout the years, Melania controlled her image, created her fairytale narrative, and remained an enigma, which enabled her to play make believe. I felt it my civic duty to stop protecting her and to unearth the “most mysterious First Lady,” the world has ever known. By sharing my history with her, I unmasked her true identity and revealed an unvarnished portrait of a woman whose veneer I’ve stripped off, leaving nothing but an “unapologetically, skin-deep” woman. Only they could flick aside having their lives ripped open and all their regretful, hateful, humiliating moments splayed out for the world to see and judge. Melania and Donald are a perfect match.
Melania held one of the most honorary positions in the world, one that so many brave Americans have fought and died for. Michelle Obama, and so many first ladies before her, accomplished so many things. Michelle was beautiful, brilliant and wise on the inside and out, and in spite of being criticized constantly, actually enacted programs to help children and military families instead of just talking about it. Since Melania wasn’t going to be “given credit by the media” and had little support, she resigned herself to just go through the motions. She left behind no legacy or profile to be proud of as First Lady of the United States. I made a life-changing mistake and continued working for Melania, even though I knew the environment was toxic after the planning of the inauguration, because I believed I could make a difference. What a fool I was, thinking I could make a difference in the middle of this den of thieves.
Melania is no better than Donald is in terms of needing attention. She wasted a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create a platform to make a difference in the lives of so many children and didn’t provide any of that. She was just there as an extension of Donald, used to “soften” his image, highlight his showmanship, and smile for the cameras. In her free time she took up “albuming” and made scrapbooks filled with photographs of herself. Melania is simply an extension of her husband, just as hypocritical, speaking out of both sides of her mouth, when it suits her best. The tapes push beyond the, “he said/she said,” and despite attempts at a public image of concern and care; what was on the back of Melania’s jacket wasn’t just by design, it's her mantra. It extends to responsibilities as first lady, which was, “I DON’T CARE.”
Melania herself is a double-edged sword. As an immigrant, she represents the American dream come true. On the flip side, Melania symbolizes what is wrong in America. Millions idolized her and believed in her, but why? Name one thing that she actually accomplished. Try. People warned me not to work for them. And now, I can tell you, having seen it firsthand, that no one will escape the destruction created by these people.
Melania represents what is wrong in America. She got a pass in life because in America, white, “beautiful” women who are silent always have gotten a pass. Melania has made “beautifully” designed parties, events, rooms, and comes across to children as “sweet and caring.” All these ideas go back to the ’50s where women were silent and pretty, racism was rampant, immigrants did the dirty work, and men made fortunes in dirty ways. Many wives of malignant American men have done the same. At their core they are Machiavellian. Win at all costs. And make it look pretty. Melania knows exactly what is going on. Melania has always had her own agenda, BE BEST says it all. Be Best no matter what the cost.
It now makes sense to me why Melania kept her chief of staff, Stephanie Grisham, around—because she spent her time in office combatively speaking to the press and spreading falsehoods about others. It came as no surprise to learn, with less than two weeks to go, Grisham jumped ship during Trump’s self-imposed reprehensible implosion. Grisham was probably fired and used this opportunity to pretend she had a moral line in the sand.
Also, at this moment, when children are asking their parents why people destroyed our Capitol, what will be her answer? Will she continue the lies that it was antifa? Or will she tell the truth, which is, Trump lit the match that sparked the rioting and decimation. He, his children, and personal lawyer incited violence and told people to riot.
What does a mother do when a father is an abuser? Many still believe that Melania is powerless, but don’t be fooled; she is an abuser too, of the worst kind. The kind that speaks kindly to children. The sickness is under the skin. Melania knows and supports Donald and his viewpoints. If you hit him, he’ll hit you back harder. He’s the brass knuckles, aggressive guy, and she elects to grin and bear it. She turns a blind eye. The truth is she’s actually encouraging him to go for it. Be aggressive. She’s his biggest cheerleader. Well, he should pay a price. No one is above the law.
The fleecing of America will be the legacy the Trump family name will be synonymous with, their time in the White House will always be aligned and maligned with scandal, and they will always be remembered as the most careless president, first lady and first family our country has ever known.
As people are dying in America from COVID because of his ineptness, if Melania had an ounce of Eleanor Roosevelt in her, she would be out there getting the vaccine to people, supporting our nurses and doctors, and helping at food banks. They will depart the White House, with no regrets, leaving dead bodies behind, and driving off to Mar-a-Lago without looking back.
