Melania Trump breaks her silence on claims her son Barron has autism – and reveals how incident inspired her as First Lady
Melania Trump has addressed claims that her son Barron has autism for the first time in her new book.
The former First Lady suppressed the rumors, which began in the wake of her husband Donald Trump’s election in 2016.
Barron was just 10 years old when one of the former president’s biggest critics, comedian Rosie O’Donnell, sparked speculation about the couple’s son.
Melania said the “bullying” he also suffered afterwards made it impossible to accept O’Donnell’s eventual apology.
But she also revealed how it inspired her to focus her child-focused Be Best initiative on child welfare and online bullying.
Melania Trump has addressed claims that her son Barron has autism for the first time in her new memoir
“Barron’s experience of being bullied both online and in real life following the incident is a clear indication of the irreparable damage that has been done,” the spokesperson said. New York Times reports that she wrote in her memoirs. “No apology can undo the damage done to him.”
She also describes her surprise at the “resistance I encountered from tech executives” of social media companies and other online giants when they met with their leaders at the White House in March 2018 to discuss child safety.
One of the memoir’s biggest revelations is Melania’s endorsement of abortion rights, which stands in stark contrast to her husband’s.
“A woman’s fundamental right to individual freedom over her own life gives her the power to terminate her pregnancy if she so chooses,” she wrote.
“Restricting a woman’s right to choose whether to terminate an unwanted pregnancy is like denying her control over her own body.”
However, she appears to hold views similar to her husband’s on most other issues, including criticizing the validity of the 2020 election results.
The former First Lady suppressed the rumors, which began in the wake of her husband Donald Trump’s 2016 election victory
Melania recalled how her son was bullied online and said the damage it caused made it impossible to accept an apology from comedian Rosie O’Donnell, who sparked the speculation.
Melania Trump discussed the situation in her new memoir, ‘Melania’
“You can’t just keep counting votes for days, and that’s exactly what they did,” she wrote, which seems to explain her lack of conviction for the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol.
‘It was a mess. Many Americans still have doubts about the election to this day. I’m not the only one who questions the results.’
Melania also addresses the 2018 firestorm surrounding her decision to wear a jacket, saying, “I really don’t care, do you?” while visiting migrant children in Texas.
The sartorial mistake came as her husband’s administration oversaw a policy at the southern border that led to thousands of families being separated.
The former first lady blames the policy on then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions and claims she personally lobbied her husband to overturn it.”
The government should not take children away from their parents,” he recalled. ‘This has got to stop.’
The decision to wear the jacket is seen as a swipe at the media’s ‘skewed stories’ rather than as related to the visit.
She shared how the incident inspired her to focus her child-focused Be Best initiative on child welfare and online bullying
Melania also addresses the 2018 firestorm surrounding her decision to wear a jacket, saying, “I really don’t care, do you?” while visiting migrant children in Texas
Melania Trump has protected Barron in the past
Her defense of her husband even extends to her portrayal of their marriage, notably glossing over several scandals during the campaign and during her time in office.
These include his infamous boast about being able to grab women by the genitals, which was caught on tape and released in 2016, as well as allegations that he paid hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels.
Instead, Melania paints a picture of a united front, sharing a love for Elton John and writing letters to Britain’s King Charles.
The former First Lady also talks about how her husband had a front-row seat to some of the most important moments in history, including being invited to witness a military attack on ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.