Melania Trump’s spokeswoman blasted a CNN op-ed that discussed the first lady’s plummeting approval rating and suggested that she is a “reluctant” first lady, News Corp Australia is reporting.
On Saturday, CNN’s first lady correspondent Kate Anderson Bower published an opinion piece – “ Melania Shows She’s A Trump Through And Through ” – that was highly unfavorable to the wife of the 45th president. The piece cited Mrs. Trump’s plummeting approval rating, which has fallen 11 points from 54 percent in October to 43 percent as of Saturday, as well as a handful of controversies and missteps swirling around Melania since she began her term as the first lady.
“We are getting to know Melania Trump more and more the longer her husband is in office, and it seems that many people are not liking what they see.”
Bower mentioned Mrs. Trump’s decision to wear a jacket with the message “I Really Don’t Care, Do U?” when she visited a Texas detention center where migrant children were held, separated from their families; her poorly-received “Be Best” anti-bullying campaign and its juxtaposition with her husband’s frequent use of social media to bully his enemies and critics; and her controversial remarks on the #MeToo movement.
Bower concludes that Mrs. Trump’s hostility to the press, perhaps born of her husband’s antithesis to the media as well, plus her conclusions that she’s being treated unfairly, are all barriers to her properly doing the job of first lady.
“Melania has clouded the profound responsibility and honor of the position with her own personal resentment.”
First lady Melania Trump’s spokeswoman speaks out https://t.co/0mKug2yAvT (via @CNNOpinion ) pic.twitter.com/u8UndpA7yp
— CNN (@CNN) December 17, 2018
In an op-ed piece of her own, published Sunday on CNN , Stephanie Grisham rejected the criticisms Bower raised against the first lady, calling Bowers’ piece “condescending” and “yet another unnecessary attack on the first lady.” She also called the first lady’s plummeting poll numbers “trivial.”
“The media consistently ignores the first lady’s work on behalf of the people of this country, and children in particular, in favor of more trivial matters.”
She also focused on some of the good deeds Mrs. Trump has done just in the past few weeks, including participating in a Toys for Tots drive, visiting with military servicemembers and their families, and spending time at a children’s hospital.
Further, Grisham points out that Mrs. Trump has performed some of the more traditional, domestic duties of first lady, such as hosting state dinners, welcoming foreign heads of state, attending funerals of dignitaries, and overseeing preservation efforts at the White House.
Grisham concludes by saying that Bowers’ claim that Melania is “a Trump through and through” is spot-on, and she says that Mrs. Trump is “proud” to be the first lady of the United States.
