- Trump complained about Melania getting flak for her Christmas decor in a speech this weekend.
- The former first lady was mocked in 2018 for installing red Christmas trees.
Former President
In a speech at the First Baptist Church in Dallas, the former president criticized the media for going after his wife's
"I have to just start by wishing everybody a very, very merry Christmas," Trump said during his speech. He went on to talk about how Melania was a former first lady "loved by everybody" but lamented that she "didn't get exactly a fair shake."
"She would make the most beautiful Christmas decorations," Trump said. "And I remember she made these magnificent red trees, and the media said, 'Oh, that's terrible.' I said, 'Honey, next time, try white.'
"She made magnificent — remember, the most beautiful you've ever seen — white trees. And they said, 'Oh, that's terrible.' I said, the next time, 'Let's do it more traditional. Let's go with green,'" Trump said.
"We went with beautiful green trees, and they said: 'Why wouldn't you make them white like they used to be?' But I'll tell you what, she's loved all over, and she's got a tremendous heart, and she says hello," Trump added.
In 2017,
—Kate Gray (@hownottodraw) November 27, 2017
The next year she installed red, cranberry-covered trees at the White House that were mocked for appearing to be covered in blood.
In 2020, Melania's enthusiasm for Christmas was questioned when an audio recording of her complaining about decorating the White House for the holidays surfaced. The 2018 conversation was recorded and leaked by the first lady's friend, Stephanie Winston Wolkoff.
"I'm working my ass off at Christmas stuff that you know, who gives a fuck about Christmas stuff and decoration?" she is heard saying on the leaked tapes. "But I need to do it, right? Correct?"
"OK, and then I do it, and I say that I'm working on Christmas and planning for the Christmas, and they said, 'Oh, what about the children that, they were separated?' Give me a fucking break," she said, referring to a controversial visit she made to the border to visit children who were separated from their parents. During the visit, she wore a jacket that said "I don't really care. Do u?"
Separately, the former president claimed last week that Americans can wish one another "merry Christmas" only because he fought the "woke" and "crazy people" who wanted to cancel the greeting.