Despite rumors to the contrary, former first lady Melania Trump is on board with former President Donald Trump’s reelection bid in 2024.
“My husband achieved tremendous success in his first administration, and he can lead us toward greatness and prosperity once again. He has my support, and we look forward to restoring hope for the future and leading America with love and strength,” Ms. Trump said in an interview with Fox News Digital.
Media speculation as to Ms. Trump’s feelings on Mr. Trump’s political career and legal troubles swirled after she did not accompany him to his April 4 arraignment in Manhattan on 34 counts of falsifying business records and to his appearance at an event at Mar-a-Lago that night.
Ms. Trump did appear at a brunch at Mar-a-Lago on April 9 for Easter Sunday, sitting next to Mr. Trump.
A couple of days later, her office called out news organizations for using unnamed sources to make “assumptions about the former first lady’s stance on subjects that are personal, professional and political” in a pair of tweets.
We ask readers to exercise caution and good judgment when determining whether or not stories concerning the former First Lady are accurate, particularly when they fail to cite Mrs. Trump as a source of information.
— Office of Melania Trump (@OfficeofMelania) April 11, 2023
The business records in question in Mr. Trump’s criminal trial in New York relate to purported hush money payments made to former adult film star Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal.
Mr. Trump also is dealing with a civil suit from author E. Jean Carroll, who claims Mr. Trump raped her in 1996.
Ms. Carroll seeks to win civil damages for sexual battery, as well as for defamation; the author claims that Mr. Trump’s vehement denial of the accusation led to her firing at Elle magazine, where she worked 27 years.
A recent survey released Sunday from ABC News and The Washington Post, taken from April 28 to Wednesday, showed that these legal problems are not a political factor with potential voters.
The poll showed Mr. Trump leading Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis by 28 points — 53% to 25% — and recorded Mr. Trump leading President Joe Biden by six points for the 2024 general election, 45% to 39%.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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