Melania, Ivanka and Barron Trump are among family members who gathered at Trump Tower but did not appear at Donald Trump’s news conference where he railed against his conviction in a case related to a hush-money payment to a porn star to keep quiet about their affair.
The former first lady remained silent during the trial and the verdict of 34 guilty people was pronounced against her husband. Ivanka posted a message of love to her father on her social media.
But Melania and their 18-year-old son are at their home in New York, where Trump has been camping for his trial in Manhattan.
Ivanka Trump and husband Jared Kushner are also in Trump Tower, DailyMail.com has learned, as the family gathers around their patriarch following his conviction.
Eric Trump, who has spent most days in the courtroom with his father, and his wife Lara Trump, the co-chair of the Republican National Committee, were present at the news conference as the former president railed about the case.
Lara shared a video on social media of her and Eric’s two children hugging Donald Trump and giving him handmade drawings. The video appeared to be shot in Trump’s apartment in Trump Tower.
Melania Trump and Barron Trump – seen above at Mar-a-Lago on Easter – are at Trump Tower
Melania and son Barron are the only Trump members not to appear in court with the former president or post supportive messages on social media.
Don Jr., Eric and Tiffany all appeared in court. Ivanka Trump posted a four-word message on Instagram Thursday evening in support of her father: “I love you, Dad.”
The former first lady was last seen in public with Donald Trump on May 17, when their son Barron Trump graduated from high school.
Meanwhile, Trump denounced his conviction.
“This is a case where if they can do this to me, they can do this to anyone. These are bad people,” he said.
He also admitted that he had become “very angry” with his lawyers.
And he called Judge Juan Merchan the “devil.”
Trump’s sentencing is scheduled for July 11. He faces probation or up to four years in prison.
Stephanie Winston Wolkoff told CNN she expects Melania to act as a “distraction” at her husband’s sentencing.
Wolkoff worked with Melania in the White House in the early years of the Trump administration. The two had a friendship dating back to their days in New York, but fell out during Trump’s presidency. They no longer speak and Wolkoff wrote a tell-all memoir about her time with the Trumps.
“I really believe she will show up and it will be the art of distraction. It will shine a bright light on Melania when it is needed most, when there are other things happening in Donald’s life that need to be overshadowed,” Wolkoff said.
Eric and Lara Trump watch Donald Trump’s press conference
Ivanka Trump is also in Trump Tower to support her father
“This is a case where if they can do this to me, they can do this to anyone. These are bad people,” Donald Trump said
Trump will be sentenced four days before the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where he will formally accept the Republican Party’s presidential nomination.
It is unclear whether Melania will attend the convention or address it as she did in 2016 and 2020. Barron Trump was originally selected as a delegate from Florida, but Melania later announced he would not serve as a delegate due to “prior commitments.”
She does not want to say exactly what those commitments are. Barron Trump graduated from high school earlier this month. The Trumps have not said where he will attend college or what his future plans are.
All the other Trump children – except Ivanka – are delegates to the convention.
The New York case involved Donald Trump paying porn star Stormy Daniels to silence her during the 2016 election over claims of an affair.
Trump denies sleeping with Daniels, claiming it happened in 2006, shortly after Melania gave birth to Barron.
But Trump’s then-fixer Michael Cohen paid Daniels $130,000 during the election to keep her quiet about the story.
Trump was convicted of falsifying company records when it came to reimbursing Cohen for the payment.
When the payment was announced in 2017, Melania was said to be blind.
She made her feelings known by canceling on Trump and refusing to go with him to the World Economic Forum in Davos even though she was supposed to attend. Instead, she fled behind the walls of Mar-a-Lago, their Palm Beach estate.
But Melania Trump is said to be following media coverage of the trial. However, it was also believed that she saw it as her husband’s problem and not hers.