Melania Trump was accused on a US politics podcast this week ofbecoming a 'political liability' for the White House, with biographer Michael Wolff warning that the First Lady's recent public interventions could prove 'dangerous' for her husband, Donald Trump.
Melania Trump has largely preferred to stay in the background during her husband's turbulent political career, surfacing mainly for carefully managed events and scripted addresses. That pattern has shifted in recent weeks.
The First Lady has written a high‑profile Mother's Day essay forThe Washington Post, spoken at length about military families at a White House event, and, more surprisingly, delivered an unannounced statementdistancing herself from the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. It is this sudden burst of visibility that has set offWolff's alarm bells.
On The Daily Beast'sInside Trump's Headpodcast, Wolff argued that Melania Trump's recent actions have repeatedly created friction inside Trump's tight inner circle.
'In the times that she has come out, that has not been good for them,' he said, adding that people close to the president are uneasy about what she chooses to address in public.
He was particularly struck by her decision to talk about Jeffrey Epstein, a subject the Trump camp usually treats like exposed wiring.
In an unscheduled appearance at the White House on 9 April, Melania Trump read a short statement pointedly denying online claims that Epstein introduced her to Donald Trump. She described him instead as someone who simply attended the same social gatherings.
'Fake images and statements about Epstein and me have been circulating on social media for years now,' she said. 'Be cautious about what you believe: These images and stories are completely false.'
In the fuller version of her remarks, she went further, calling the stories 'lies' and the people spreading them 'devoid of ethical standards, humility, and respect.' She insisted, 'I have never been friends with Epstein. Donald and I were invited to the same parties as Epstein from time to time, since overlapping in social circles is common in New York City and Palm Beach.'
For Wolff, the very act of putting Epstein's name back into headlines was a strategic misstep. He told the podcast that Melania Trump's 'peculiar attitude about everything' and her 'strategic absences' have long puzzled those around Trump, and that her decision to speak out now 'could be dangerous for Donald Trump.'
Source: International Business Times UK
