Trump ‘obsessed’ with Melania’s popularity ratings … because they’re better than his!
DONALD Trump is fixated by his wife Melania’s opinion poll ratings because she is more popular than him, it has been claimed.
The US president had a 40% approval rating in January, while his wife’s was 47%. And the latest poll by CNN has put the first lady’s rating at 57%.
Mr Trump is said to have been obsessed with his poll numbers since his presidential campaign because he sees them in the same way he did TV ratings when he was host of the reality show The Apprentice.
For her part, Mrs Trump – who last night launched her formal agenda as US first lady with a warning of the negative effect of social media on children – appears to be becoming more popular as she raises her profile.
In a report yesterday, The Washington Post examined the Trump marriage and found that, contrary to public perception, the president does listen to his wife’s advice. One friend said he calls her when he travels and relies on her counsel.
The relationship between Mr Trump and his wife has been under scrutiny since last May when she was seen swatting his hand away on an official trip to Israel. Allegations that Mr Trump had an affair with former porn star Stormy Daniels have added further tension to their marriage.
But The Washington Post said that was not the whole story, with former adviser Stephanie Winston Wolkoff saying they have an ‘unspoken affinity’. Another friend said that ‘she is someone he relies on and listens to’, especially when he travels.
Mrs Winston Wolkoff is a long-time friend of Mrs Trump, a former model from Slovenia. She said: ‘She is a dignified, private person, and she’ll deal with her personal life in private and it’s no one’s business.
‘They are not that couple that holds hands just because. She is old-world European and it’s not who she is.’
However, it is understood that the couple lead mostly separate lives in the White House. Mrs Trump rarely enters the West Wing, her husband’s domain – while the East Wing, where she has her office and is liked by her staff of ten, is small by historical standards.
They both get up at around 5.30am and while Mr Trump tweets and watches TV, Mrs Trump gets their son Barron, 12, ready for school and checks he has his homework in his bag.
Yesterday, Mrs Trump unveiled her agenda as first lady in a ten-minute speech watched by an audience including her husband.
At the launch of ‘Be Best’, she said adults had a responsibility to teach children how to use Facebook and Twitter with ‘compassion’.
‘Social media can both positively and negatively affect our children, but too often it’s used in negative ways,’ she said. ‘When children learn positive online behaviours early on, social media can be used in productive ways and can affect positive change.
‘I believe that children should be both seen and heard, and it’s our responsibility as adults to educate and remind them that when they’re using their voices, whether verbally or online, they must choose their words wisely and speak with respect and compassion.’
‘She’s a dignified, private person’