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What Melania Trump said in response to claims she was with Donald for his money, ‘If somebody said…’
A resurfaced interview of Melania Trump has revealed her reaction to claims that she was with Donald Trump just for his wealth.
A resurfaced interview of Melania Trump has revealed her reaction to uncomfortable claims that had surfaced at the time: was she with Donald Trump just for money? Melania was only 28 when she met Donald, who was 52. The age gap prompted many people to question her intentions in the relationship.
The interview in question was a 1999 ABC News interview that took place shortly after Melania and Donald went public with their relationship. Correspondent Don Dahler asked Melania about their relationship, and Melania went on to hit back at claims that she was with Donald only for his wealth.
‘They don't know me’
"You know, the people, they don't know me," she said in the interview. "People who talk like this, they don't know me."
"Well, you don't see many 26-year-old supermodels on the arm of a 53-year-old car mechanic,” the journalist responded.
"You know what, you can't sleep or to hug or to talk with beautiful things, with beautiful apartment, beautiful plane, beautiful cars, beautiful houses, you can't do that,” Melania replied.
"You could feel very empty," she added. "And if somebody said, 'You're with the man because he's rich and famous,' they don't know me."
Donald proposed to Melania in 2004, and they tied the knot a year later. Their son, Barron Trump, was born in 2006.
In the interview, Melania was also asked if she could see herself as first lady in the future. "Yes, I would be very traditional like Jackie Kennedy. I will support him, I will do a lot of social obligations," she said at the time.
"I would stand by [my] man," she added.
Melania has faced criticism time and again during her time in the White House. She has even been questioned about her apparent lack of visibility and involvement in politics.
Melania addressed the criticism in an interview with Fox & Friends ahead of Donald's 2025 inauguration. "Maybe some people, they see me as just a wife of the president, but I'm standing on my own two feet, independent," she said. "I have my own thoughts. I have my own yes and no."
"I don't always agree what my husband is saying or doing, and that's okay," Melania added. "I give him my advice, and sometimes he listens, sometimes he doesn't, and that's okay."
"I feel I was always me the first time [in the White House] as well," she further said, adding that the public "didn't accept" or "understand" her during Donald’s first term.
