After Melania Trump wore a jacket with the words “I Really Don’t Care” printed across the back, all the while making a trip to visit a child immigrant detention center, her office blasted back at critics who saw the jacket as an insensitive statement by saying there was no “hidden meaning.”
Just a few hours later, Donald Trump took to Twitter to reveal the hidden meaning behind Melania’s jacket.
The president claimed that Melania’s jacket was a statement against the “Fake News” media, and in doing so appeared to catch the first lady’s office in a lie about the apparel. Melania had been making a visit to a facility where children were being held, just days after Donald Trump reversed course on his controversial policy to take immigrant children from their parents who enter the United States.
As many noted, Donald Trump’s tweet appeared to immediately contradict Melania Trump’s office and cast her visit more as a stunt to make a statement against the media than a genuine trip to show interest in the children affected by Trump’s policy. As the images of Melania Trump’s “I Really Don’t Care” jacket continued to go viral, the criticism on both Donald and Melania Trump continued to mount.
Trump says Melania’s jacket had a message, contradicts her spokeswoman https://t.co/P81GN3zWLb
— Insider Business (@BusinessInsider) June 21, 2018
“I REALLY DON’T CARE, DO U?” written on the back of Melania’s jacket, refers to the Fake News Media. Melania has learned how dishonest they are, and she truly no longer cares!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 21, 2018
Melania Trump has faced growing criticism for her failure to step in as the destructive policy separated more than 2,000 children from their parents. The first lady has spearheaded a “Be Best” initiative, whose primary aim is to promote healthy behaviors among children, but child health experts have said that the practice of taking children from their parents has detrimental effects to their long-term health. Many had called on Melania to use her influence to convince Donald Trump to end his policy, and blasted the first lady when she issued a statement that blamed “both sides” despite the policy being instituted by Trump’s administration.
Melania was also criticized for a meeting with the queen of Spain, during which she said they discussed “ways to positively impact children,” which came amid the height of the controversy surrounding the child separation policy.
A great visit with the King & Queen of Spain at the @WhiteHouse today. Queen Letizia & I enjoyed tea & time together focusing on the ways we can positively impact children. pic.twitter.com/IiaMQOil3K
— Melania Trump 45 Archived (@FLOTUS45) June 19, 2018
This is not the first time that Melania Trump and her husband’s administration have not appeared on the same page. Just a week before, Trump’s newest lawyer and spokesman, Rudy Giuliani, said that Melania believed Donald when he said he didn’t have an affair with adult film star Stormy Daniels. Melania’s office blasted back by saying she had never discussed the matter with Giuliani, saying that the first lady speaks for herself.