Trump Hammers Media for Promoting 'Sick Narrative' About Melania's Recovery
First lady Melania Trump made a long-awaited public appearance this week about three weeks after undergoing a medical procedure.
Her absence in the interim sparked concern among some in the media that there was more to the story than White House reports initially indicated. Speculation grew on social media regarding the supposed nature of her sudden reclusive behavior following a period of uncharacteristic public exposure.
She had just hosted the administration’s first state dinner and unveiled her “Be Best” campaign prior to her hospitalization for what was described as a benign kidney condition
Since the procedure, the first lady was not seen publicly and announced that she would not be attending the G7 summit in Canada.
The rumors that began to swirl died down following the first lady’s appearance earlier this week at a White House event honoring Gold Star families.
In a two-part Twitter response to the controversy, Trump gave attention to some of the conspiracies that have surfaced online.
The Fake News Media has been so unfair, and vicious, to my wife and our great First Lady, Melania. During her recovery from surgery they reported everything from near death, to facelift, to left the W.H. (and me) for N.Y. or Virginia, to abuse. All Fake, she is doing really well!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 6, 2018
He blamed the “Fake News Media” for being “so unfair, and vicious” to his wife, suggesting journalists accepted as fact the theories peddled by some pundits and provocateurs.
“During her recovery from surgery they reported everything from near death, to facelift, to left the W.H. (and me) for N.Y. or Virginia, to abuse,” he wrote. “All Fake, she is doing really well!”
The Rolling Stone’s Jamil Smith was among the media figures to openly opine, tweeting on Sunday that he wished he didn’t believe her absence “could be about concealing abuse.”
I wish that I didn’t suspect that the prolonged, poorly explained public absence of Melania Trump could be about concealing abuse. I wish that it was a ludicrous prospect. I wish that the @POTUS wasn’t a man with a history of abusing women, including those to whom he is married.
— Jamil Smith جميل كريم (@JamilSmith) June 3, 2018
Minutes after his first tweet, Trump claimed that a group of White House reporters purposely withheld the fact that they saw the first lady “walking merrily along to a meeting” last week.
…Four reporters spotted Melania in the White House last week walking merrily along to a meeting. They never reported the sighting because it would hurt the sick narrative that she was living in a different part of the world, was really ill, or whatever. Fake News is really bad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 6, 2018
“They never reported the sighting because it would hurt the sick narrative that she was living in a different part of the world, was really ill, or whatever,” he wrote. “Fake News is really bad!”
During her convalescence, a tweet posted to Melania Trump’s account addressed the ongoing media attention surrounding her condition.
I see the media is working overtime speculating where I am & what I'm doing. Rest assured, I'm here at the @WhiteHouse w my family, feeling great, & working hard on behalf of children & the American people!
— Melania Trump 45 Archived (@FLOTUS45) May 30, 2018
“I see the media is working overtime speculating where I am & what I’m doing,” she wrote on May 30. “Rest assured, I’m here at the @WhiteHouse w my family, feeling great, & working hard on behalf of children & the American people!”
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