“Knowing what I know and what my reporting on Melania Trump shows, she likes being first lady. But my reporting does not show that she enjoys campaigning,” Katie Rogers – who recently wrote “American Woman” about the transformation of the modern first lady – told POLITICO this week.
While people on social media have been speculating about the whereabouts of Princess of Wales Kate Middleton, an even longer conspiracy theory trend about the former first lady continued this week. When Melania didn’t show up to her husband’s Super Tuesday victory party, rumors began to churn again.
It’s not the first time people have noted Melania’s absence from former President Donald Trump’s side at political events and legal proceedings.
Intelligencer from New York Magazine described her public presence last year as akin to “Where’s Waldo” with appearances at Rosalynn Carter’s funeral and a National Archives ceremony. Snarky “Missing Melania” flyers were even distributed earlier this year at an Iowa football game.
“In recent weeks, however, it seemed as if the former First Lady was poised to reemerge,” said Intelligencer. “On February 11 she attended a fundraising gala hosted by one of her… husband’s fan clubs, the Trumpettes, at Mar-a-Lago.”
Then, at a Fox News town hall on Feb. 22, Trump told Laura Ingraham that Melania will be seen more in public soon.
“She’s gonna be out a lot. Not because she likes doing it, but because she likes the results. She wants to see this country really succeed,” Trump said. “She’s gonna be out quite a bit, and she loves this country and she wants it great.”
Since former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley dropped out of the race after Trump’s Super Tuesday wins, he’s now the only Republican in the running to the 2024 presidential candidate, though he won’t be the official candidate until the Republican National Convention this summer.
Although Melania hasn’t been attending many public events, Intelligencer said there were “quite a few reasons,” why she might have attended her husband’s victory party.
“Multiple Trump family members were there, including Trump’s oldest son, Donald Jr., and his fiancée, Kimberly Guilfoyle; his son Eric and his wife, Lara; and his daughter Tiffany,” said the outlet. Journalist Aaron Rupar said that Trump’s shout-out to his family members made Melania’s absence more conspicuous.
Trump has recently made very positive comments about Melania, including a public Valentine’s Day message and words about her dedication to their teenage son, Barron. However, during a recent gaffe, he appeared to call his wife “Mercedes” instead of Melania.
Intelligencer noted that the Super Tuesday event was at Melania’s home – Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla. – where she frequently attends events.
Melania was also absent from Christmas phots taken at Mar-a-Lago last year that include other members of the family. Audacy reported that she was visiting her ailing mother, who passed away soon after.
Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, a former senior adviser to Melania who wrote the book “Melania and Me: The Rise and Fall of My Friendship with the First Lady”, said in an X post that Melania wasn’t at the Super Tuesday event because she didn’t have to be.
“His supporters do NOT care if she is by his side or NOT, so now she does NOT have to be. NOThing more, NOThing less,” Wolfoff said.
Some people have speculated that Melania avoids certain events as an act of resistance or disagreement with her husband, but Rogers doesn’t think that’s the case.
“The reality of it is that, after reporting on this, she mirrors her husband’s grievances and channels them in her own way and is, in most cases, not a mediating force for him at all,” said Rogers. “In fact, the opposite is often true, where if her husband is being attacked, she encourages him to fight back.”
In late January, Audacy reported on former White House press secretary and communications director Stephanie Grisham’s comments that Melania wanted Trump to “really”defend himself in the E. Jean Carroll defamation case where a jury ordered him to pay $83 million. Previously, a different jury found that Trump sexually abused Carroll in the 1990s.
After trying to delay the payment, Trump had to put up a $92 million bond for that case Friday.
“My reporting does not show that she enjoys defending her husband, as she has been called to do numerous times,” said Rogers. “And my reporting doesn’t show that she has an interest in returning to Washington full time.”
If Trump does win another term in the White House, Rogers expects that Melania would embrace the role, but that she would go back and forth from Mar-a-Lago to D.C. Until then, Rogers said she would be surprised to see Trump’s wife on the campaign trail any time soon.