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Biden-era FBI’s ‘Nixonian’ Trump family surveillance draws scrutiny from unlikely corner
Julian Epstein, a former top Democratic official, compared the FBI's tracking of Melania Trump, Barron Trump and Susie Wiles to Nixonian tactics.
Melania Trump hosts China’s first lady
WASHINGTON (AP) — Melania Trump and Peng Liyuan on Thursday toured one of the largest Asian art museums in the United States, celebrating cultural ties between the U.S. and China during a high-profile diplomatic visit to Washington. Leaving their husbands behind at the White House, the first ladies visited the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian […]
Melania Trump’s Busy Schedule: A New Show, a Foster-Care Bill and Reading Executive Orders
In a burst of activity this week, the enigmatic first lady told Americans what she has been up to after a quiet summer. Her activities have included filming a new documentary series about her life.
Melania Trump launches new Imperia women’s initiative
Its member include CEOs, founders, innovators and entrepreneurs
Melania Trump breaks with the president on media ban
President Donald Trump has implemented a ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico at the White House, seizing reporters’ credentials amid what he deems unfair coverage. First lady Melania Trump, however, is taking a different approach on press freedom.
Inside Florida Politics podcasters talk Melania Trump's AI event
First lady Melania Trump traveled to North Carolina recently to discuss Hurricane Helene and artificial intelligence. Hear about it on Inside Florida Politics.
WATCH LIVE: First lady Melania Trump visits North Carolina school to discuss tech in the classroom
As AI debate flares, Melania Trump will tour a North Carolina school to see technology at work
First lady Melania Trump is set to visit northwestern North Carolina to talk to elementary school students, teachers and staff about how they’re using technology in the classroom
'Kimmel' Guest Host Colman Domingo Trolls MAGA With Epic Melania Trump Reminder
The actor mocked right-wing outrage over the cast of “The Odyssey.”
Celebrities from across sports, entertainment and more spotted at World Cup final
Making his first appearance at this year’s World Cup, President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were joined in their suite by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and wife Diana and more.
The Quintessential Trump-era Politician
In 2020, I wrote an article about collaboration and collaborators. The title was History Will Judge the Complicit, and it started with the story of two famous East Germans, Markus Wolf and Wolfgang Leonhard, who both landed in East Berlin just after the end of the war. Although they came from very similar backgrounds, the former stuck with the regime, eventually becoming its spy boss; the latter, horrified by the brutal reality of Soviet-style communism, escaped. By way of juxtaposition, I also wrote about Lyndsey Graham and Mitt Romney. These two men also made very different decisions when confronted by Donald Trump’s assault on the ideals that they had both grown up believing: A glance at their biographies would not have led many to predict what happened next. On paper, Graham would have seemed, in 2016, like the man with deeper ties to the military, to the rule of law, and to an old-fashioned idea of American patriotism and American responsibility in the world. Romney, by contrast, with his shifts between the center and the right, with his multiple careers in business and politics, would have seemed less deeply attached to those same old-fashioned patriotic ideals. Most of us register soldiers as loyal patriots, and management consultants as self-interested. We assume people from small towns in South Carolina are more likely to resist political pressure than people who have lived in many places. Intuitively, we think that loyalty to a particular place implies loyalty to a set of values. But in this case the clichés were wrong. It was Graham who made excuses for Trump’s abuse of power. It was Graham—a JAG Corps lawyer—who downplayed the evidence that the president had attempted to manipulate foreign courts and blackmail a foreign leader into launching a phony investigation into a political rival. It was Graham who abandoned his own stated support for bipartisanship and instead pushed for a hyperpartisan Senate Judiciary Committee investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden’s son. It was Graham who played golf with Trump, who made excuses for him on television, who supported the president even as he slowly destroyed the American alliances—with Europeans, with the Kurds—that Graham had defended all his life. By contrast, it was Romney who, in February, became the only Republican senator to break ranks with his colleagues, voting to impeach the president. “Corrupting an election to keep oneself in office,” he said, is “perhaps the most abusive and destructive violation of one’s oath of office that I can imagine.” In the wake of Graham’s unexpected death on Saturday, I wrote about him again. He was, in many ways, the quintessential politician of Trump’s Washington, a man who shifted 180 degrees. Graham had been a fervent American patriot, proud reserve officer and military lawyer; he became one of the most important defenders of a president who believes soldiers are “suckers and losers” and shows no respect for law of any kind. As his politics changed, his language grew coarser and his behavior grew worse: He urged Israel to “level the place” in Gaza, and insulted the Danish prime minister in Munich, prompting a colleague, Senator Elissa Slotkin, to issue an apology. Here’s an excerpt from the article, which you can read in The Atlantic (gift link here) Like his close friend John McCain, Graham believed that America should stand at the center of a broad democratic alliance. The few times I met him were in that context, at the Munich Security Conference or at other European-American gatherings, which he once attended with great regularity. He also took seriously the practice of American democracy at home. In a 2014 conversation with The Atlantic, he described himself as a pragmatic politician who eschewed populist slogans. “I know Washington is broken, but what’s broken about it is everybody yelling and nobody trying to fix it,” he said. “I’m trying.” When Donald Trump first appeared in U.S. politics, Graham recognized him immediately for what he was: the spokesman for an alien ideology, one radically different from the idealistic patriotism that Graham had practiced and preached since childhood. Trump privately mocked the military that Graham loved as nothing but “suckers and losers.” He put falsehoods, cynicism, and personal greed at the center of his politics, while expressing disdain for transparency, accountability, and democracy itself. In 2015, Graham described Trump as a “race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot” who should “go to hell.” Also as a “nutjob.” When Trump won, Graham understood, as did so many others, that he would have to make some important choices. For a while, he went silent. In the spring of 2016, I saw him at one of those conferences in Europe. He seemed too depressed to speak. But then, like many other Republicans—and, more important, like many other people who have lived under political occupation or experienced radical regime change—he made the decision to abandon his previous ideals, to bury the patriotism that was once so important to him, and to become, instead, a loud, opportunistic collaborator. As I wrote in 2020, it’s very hard to look in to anyone’s heart and to understand their motivations from the outside. But it does seem that Graham had a deep need to be relevant, to be in the game, to be a player, at any cost. And that, rather than any particular achievement, is what he will be remembered for. Continuing to monitor conflicts of interest, ostentatious emoluments, outright corruption and policy changes that will facilitate outright corruption. (Read my original article, Kleptocracy Inc and check out the SNF Agora Institute chart) June 27 Trump diverted funds from more than 900 projects nationwide—including safety upgrades at national parks—to finance beautification projects around Washington, including $700,000 used to fix a White House walkway. June 28 After a years-long Department of Justice investigation into Abbott Laboratories over its management of a baby formula facility where potentially deadly bacteria turned up enough evidence to criminally charge the firm, top department officials instead opted for a financial penalty—illustrating the department’s move away from strict corporate enforcement under the Trump administration. June 29 Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stacked the Defense Policy Board—which is charged with providing independent national security recommendations to the Office of the Secretary of Defense—with Trump allies, including tech billionaire Marc Andreessen, who has invested in defense contractors like OpenAI and SpaceX, after purging the panel last year. Trump purchased between $1 million and $5 million worth of stock in Axon—which makes about 90% of US tasers—two weeks before ICE solicited bids for a $220 million taser contract. The White House unveiled limited-edition US passports for America’s 250th birthday, featuring a portrait of Trump overlaid on the Declaration of Independence. June 30 Trump made around $1.2 billion from his various crypto companies last year, including more than $500 million from World Liberty Financial and $600 million from sales of his meme coin. Trump is considering issuing 250 pardons to commemorate America’s 250th birthday. These are expected to be largely doled out through the Office of the Pardon Attorney’s informal network of intermediaries. White-collar defense attorneys say they can typically win pardons for clients for $2 million. Last year, Trump administration officials awarded a no-bid contract worth up to $500 million to Clark Construction for the White House ballroom—negotiations in which the president was directly involved. July 1 The Amazon MGM Studios documentary about Melania Trump earned the First Lady more than $10 million. Trump made hundreds of individual stock purchases worth as much as $12.8 million the day before his announcement pausing “Liberation Day” tariffs for 90 days sent the S&P 500 soaring nearly 10%—one of the largest single-day gains ever. Mar-a-Lago and Trump National Doral saw record surges in revenue during Trump’s first year in office, earning $77.5 million and $121.9 million respectively, compared to average annual revenues of $25 million and $75 million during Trump’s first term. Entities across the Persian Gulf paid more than $300 million to Trump’s businesses last year, including $263 million from the sale of half his stake in World Liberty Financial to a firm backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a top UAE royal and brother of the country’s president. Kash Patel failed to properly disclose his stock purchase of a Department of Justice contractor, MicroStrategy, worth up to $250,000 last year, despite laws requiring disclosure within 45 days of the trade. July 2 Trump has been directing administration officials to steer more government contracts—so far worth more than $2.4 billion—to Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin aerospace firm, after Amazon gave $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund, donated to the White House ballroom project, and reached a $40 million deal to license a Melania Trump documentary. Alongside the billions he made from cryptocurrency last year, Trump earned millions of dollars from real estate licensing fees, including $21 million from organizations in the UAE and $9.2 million in Saudi Arabia, along with smaller sums from merchandise sales, including $4.7 million from Trump Watches and $35,920 from 45 Guitar, a guitar brand endorsed by the president. House Democrats accused consultants tied to the Trump administration of financial fraud, alleging they gave prospective donors to America250—the bipartisan committee created by Congress to celebrate the nation’s semiquincentennial—the banking and routing numbers for Freedom 250, the White House’s fund for events like the UFC cage fight. Democrats also allege that Freedom 250’s CEO traveled to the World Economic Forum in Davos to solicit donations from foreign government officials and business leaders. The Trump administration’s proposed rollback of gun regulations would lift the prohibition on mailing handguns to individuals, a significant win for GrabAGun—the direct-to-consumer firearm retailer on whose board Donald Trump Jr. sits and in which he holds a 1.1% ownership stake. GrabAGun currently must rely on a middleman to transfer firearms to customers. Trump’s financial disclosure revealed that he made more than 21,000 securities trades during his first year back in office, growing his investment account to at least $858 million across stakes in around 1,600 companies, compared to the 13 total trades Joe Biden made during his entire presidency. July 4 Nearly 1 million people who bought the president’s meme coin—Trump Coin—collectively lost $3.8 billion on the token, while he walked away with $636 million. July 6 Shares of Dell closed up 4.4% after Trump recommended people buy the firm’s computers during a speech announcing the launch of Trump investment accounts for children, boosting the more than $1 million worth of shares the president owns in the company. July 9 Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh named crypto investor and Trump ally Marc Andreessen to a task force aimed at modernizing the Federal Reserve, including rethinking its approach to inflation—a key factor keeping interest rates elevated. Palm Beach International Airport has officially changed its name to Trump International Airport—a move that will require Florida to pay royalties to the president’s family for licensing his name. I was there a few months ago, during a trip to Barcelona. The sculptures were a revelation, I’d never seen so many together before. Each one has its own personality. Enjoy the good weather, if you are lucky enough to have it. History Will Judge the Complicit The Quintessential Politician Autocracy Inc Open Letters, from Anne Applebaum is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe
WATCH: First lady Melania Trump announces new investment accounts for foster youth
First lady Melania Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday announced the launch of Fostering the Future Accounts, a spinoff of the Trump Accounts investment funds meant to give $1,000 to every newborn whose parent opens one.
Jeff Bezos calls Amazon’s documentary about Melania Trump ‘a good business decision’
Jeff Bezos, Blue Origin founder and Amazon executive chair, joins 'Squawk Box' to discuss the wealth disparity in America, addressing the affordability gap, the controversy surrounding Amazon’s documentary about Melania Trump, and more.
Donald Trump says wife Melania 'hates' when he dances to 'the gay national anthem': 'It's not presidential'
Donald Trump revealed that his wife, Melania Trump, 'hates' when he dances to 'what's sometimes referred to as the gay national anthem': 'It's not presidential.'
Who was invited to dinner with King Charles: Justices, business leaders and Palm Beach friends
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump hosted a white-tie dinner at the White House with King Charles III and Queen Camilla. Nearly 130 guests enjoyed Dover sole meunière and a beehive-shaped chocolate dessert on Tuesday night. The guest list included business leaders, tech CEOs and friends from Palm Beach, Florida. The six conservative justices on the Supreme Court also attended, despite Trump’s recent criticism over tariffs. Fox News stars and other conservative media figures were present, along with three of Trump’s children, his father-in-law, sports figures and lawmakers, including House and Senate leaders.
Who was invited to dinner with King Charles: Justices, business leaders and Palm Beach friends
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump hosted a white-tie dinner at the White House with King Charles III and Queen Camilla.
Melania Trump and Queen Camilla play supporting roles during state visit
As the United States and United Kingdom sought to bolster their “special relationship” on Tuesday, Queen Camilla and first lady Melania Trump were seen but not heard.
Jimmy Kimmel defends his Melania Trump 'expectant widow' joke after first lady and president call for his firing. What did he say?
The ABC late-night host said it "obviously was a joke about their age difference" and "not by any stretch of the definition a call to assassination."
Trumps call for ABC to fire Jimmy Kimmel after morbid joke about first lady
Kimmel last week described Melania Trump as having "the glow of an expectant widow"
Melania Trump implies Kimmel should lose his job over ‘expectant widow’ joke
First lady Melania Trump on Monday implied that late-night host Jimmy Kimmel should lose his job due to jokes he made during a mock White House Correspondents’ Dinner skit on his show Thursday night.
Security has long been top of mind for Melania Trump. She faced those concerns in a new way this weekend
On the eve of her 56th birthday, first lady Melania Trump recognized the danger she might face, her usual stoicism giving way to a look of surprise and distress.
How Washington’s biggest annual dinner transformed into chaos — and a crime scene
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump were seated on the stage of the cavernous Washington Hilton ballroom just after 8:30 p.m. ET Saturday evening, playfully engaging with the evening’s entertainer, mentalist Oz Pearlman.
WATCH: First lady Melania Trump advocates for U.S. foster care system improvements at House roundtable
Politics Unplugged Podcast: Laura Gersony on the SRP election and Turning Point's impact
Arizona Republic reporter Laura Gersony joins us to talk about the SRP election, and why it was a loss for Turning Point USA. Then Dennis and Colin talk about the President’s threat to end a civilization and Melania Trump's Epstein-focused press conference.
Melania Trump’s Epstein statement stunned White House aides but was in keeping with a first lady who does her own thing
With war raging and midterms on the horizon, the White House seemed to have finally shaken the Jeffrey Epstein saga that plagued the first year of Donald Trump’s second term. But for first lady Melania Trump, the Epstein story was still all consuming.
Democratic Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi says Melania Trump’s Epstein statement was ‘very important’
Epstein survivors criticise Melania Trump after surprise statement
First lady had called for a public hearing for survivors but a group of those affected say they have ‘done their part’ and reiterate calls for Pam Bondi to be questioned
Melania Trump tried to sweep the Epstein saga away, but she ended up reviving it
The most plausible explanation for first lady Melania Trump’s out-of-the-blue address on the Jeffrey Epstein drama was that she was trying to make it go away.
‘She does things very strategically.’ Melania Trump’s former top aide reacts to the First Lady’s Epstein statement
WATCH: First lady Melania Trump denies any ties to Jeffrey Epstein and calls for survivors' testimony
Melania Trump shares the spotlight with a robot at an education and technology event
Melania Trump and the humanoid walked slowly side by side along the red carpet from the opposite end of a White House hallway.
Melania Trump’s very robotic White House guest
The storied White House East Room has welcomed politicians, foreign dignitaries, war heroes, celebrities and elite athletes, but on Wednesday, it was the setting for an extremely robotic speech introducing first lady Melania Trump.
Melania Trump hosts world counterparts and tech reps to discuss children, education and technology
Melania Trump is calling on nations to work together to improve access to education and technology for children
Melania Trump convenes first Fostering the Future Together summit
At the summit, 45 countries and 28 technology companies are discussing ways to empower children through education and technology, including AI
Trump’s Iran war drags the world into his tear-it-down politics
America’s attitude toward allies leading up to the Iran war was the geopolitical equivalent of a slogan on a jacket once notoriously sported by first lady Melania Trump: “I Really Don’t Care. Do U?”
'Conflict arises from ignorance.' Melania Trump chairs UNSC meeting
First lady Melania Trump presided over a United Nations Security Council meeting. The historic appearance came as the war in Iran is escalating.
First lady Melania and Donald Trump bringing separate guests to SOTU in break with precedent
First lady Melania Trump will bring guests to the State of the Union address representing her foster care and responsible AI platforms while President Donald Trump has invited his own set of guests – a move that marks a break from precedent.
Melania Trump to craft valentines with families at The Children's Inn
The First Lady made similar holiday visits to the NIH facility during Donald Trump's first term.
‘Melania’ falls steeply and ‘Send Help’ holds steady at No. 1 on a quiet weekend in theaters
NEW YORK (AP) — Hollywood largely ceded attention to football over a slow box-office weekend, with the survival thriller “Send Help” repeating as No. 1 in ticket sales and the Melania Trump documen…
'Melania' falls steeply and 'Send Help' holds steady at No. 1 on a quiet weekend in theaters
Hollywood is largely ceding attention to football this weekend. The survival thriller “Send Help” repeated as the weekend's No. 1 film at the box office and the Melania Trump documentary...
Melania Trump referenced her documentary at a White House event with former hostages. She says it’s ‘not promotion’
One of the more emotional moments in first lady Melania Trump’s new documentary comes when she meets Aviva Siegel, a former hostage held by Hamas who’s advocating for the release of her husband, in January 2025.
'Becoming' media moguls? Michelle Obama, Melania Trump pursue Hollywood
"Melania," the first lady's documentary offers a differing approach to the Obamas' turn in Hollywood after they exited the White House.
How viewers around the world responded to Melania Trump’s documentary
Marla Ailor attended President Donald Trump’s inauguration last year with her family, and remembered thinking it was a long day.
Response to Melania Trump documentary reflects America’s political division
CARMEL, Ind. — Marla Ailor attended President Donald Trump’s inauguration last year with her family, and remembered thinking it was a long day. So she ...
I’ve covered Melania Trump for more than a decade. Here’s what I learned from her new documentary
“Melania” the documentary is a big, beautiful coffee table book of a film, filled with glossy images, high fashion and a captivating soundtrack.
Melania Trump documentary won't be released in this country
Melania Trump's new documentary, "Melania," has been pulled from theaters in South Africa after the film's distributor abruptly canceled its release.
Eggs, hats and unfettered political ambition: what we learned about Melania Trump from her documentary
The first lady’s political goals, high-stakes clothes fittings and hints that she and Donald still have sex are just some of the highlights from Brett Ratner’s documentary
Inside the premiere of Melania Trump’s not-documentary documentary
First lady Melania Trump wants you to know that her new documentary is not a documentary.
Melania Trump reveals advice she gives President Trump — and why she doesn’t watch him on TV all day
Melania Trump opens up in rare interview about her private approach to advising President Donald Trump and her selective media appearances strategy.
What to know about the Melania Trump documentary
As Melania Trump prepares to walk the red carpet at the newly rebranded Kennedy Center Thursday evening, she is proving that a peek behind the curtain of her life isn’t just a historical record, but a multi-million-dollar commodity.
Melania Trump calls for unity after Minneapolis shootings in rare interview
First lady Melania Trump on Tuesday called on Americans to unify in the wake of the fatal shootings of two US citizens by federal law enforcement and widespread protests in Minneapolis this month.
'Unify.' Melania Trump calls for peace in Minneapolis in rare statement
"I'm against the violence, so please, if you protest, protest in peace," the first lady said. "We need to unify."
Melania Trump’s multimillion-dollar documentary project faces a key test this week
First lady Melania Trump and Amazon MGM Studios face a high-stakes test this week with the release of the “Melania” documentary: Will the multimillion-dollar investment pay off?
Melania Trump was once the one making controversial White House design choices. Now, it's Donald Trump.
The 2025 White House Christmas decorations reflect Melania Trump's shift to a more low-key role while Donald Trump opts for bold design changes.
I toured the White House to see Melania Trump's Christmas decorations. The East Wing is no more, but the display was still dazzling.
First lady Melania Trump unveiled the 2025 White House Christmas decorations centered on the theme "Home Is Where The Heart Is."