Yahoo News Donald and Melania Trump ‘spend very little to no time together’ as first lady's popularity grows
Donald and Melania Trump spend little to no time together, it has been reported.
The US president and the first lady have very different and very packed schedules which causes them to rarely see each other, the Washington Post said.
The newspaper quoted a longtime friend of Mr Trump as saying: “They spend very little to no time together.”
Another source claimed Mrs Trump doesn’t make regular trips from her office in the East Wing of the White House to her husband’s.
“She seldom sets foot in the West Wing,” they said.
The Washington Post said Mr Trump wakes at 5.30am each day to watch cable television news shows and to go on Twitter, while Mrs Trump gets up a bit later and gets their son Barron, 12, ready for school.
Although Mrs Trump has not yet publicly addressed the alleged affairs her husband has had with other women, she is steadily raising her profile after a year spent largely in the shadows.
A poll carried out by YouGov at the end of last month revealed that Mrs Trump is more popular than her husband, with 40% viewing her positively to his 35%.
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It also emerged that the president failed to buy his wife a birthday present.
He said: “Maybe I didn’t get her so much. I got her a beautiful card.
“You know I’m too busy to be running out looking for presents. Okay, but I got her a beautiful card and some beautiful flowers.”
On Monday, Mrs Trump launched a new programme to promote the well-being of children, under the motto, “Be best”.
She launched her long-awaited initiative after more than a year of reading to children, learning about babies born addicted to drugs and hosting a White House conversation on cyberbullying.
“As a mother and as first lady, it concerns me that in today’s fast-paced and ever-connected world, children can be less prepared to express or manage their emotions and often times turn to forms of destructive or addictive behaviour such as bullying, drug addiction or even suicide,” she said.
“I feel strongly that as adults, we can and should ‘be best’ at educating our children about the importance of a healthy and balanced life.”
She said social media is too often used in negative ways and that it is important for children to learn positive online behaviours at a young age.
“I do believe that children should be both seen and heard, and it is our responsibility as adults to educate and remind them that when they are using their voices – whether verbally or online – they must choose their words wisely and speak with respect and compassion,” the first lady said.
Monday’s announcement followed a period of high visibility for a first lady who once had a scant public presence around the White House.
Last month, she joined her husband to host the prime minister of Japan at the Trumps’ Florida estate and the president of France at the White House. She also represented the administration at the April funeral of former first lady Barbara Bush.
Mrs Trump’s announcement also came as her husband remains under intense legal pressure from a special counsel’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and is facing questions over hush money paid by one of his lawyers to porn actress Stormy Daniels, who says she had sex with Mr Trump in 2006. He denies her accusation.
