AP Photo/Andrew Harnik
- Former first lady Melania Trump has not been a major presence on the campaign trail.
- A NYT report revealed that she has kept a low profile in part because of feelings of betrayal.
- People close to the first lady brought up tell-all books which cast her in an unfavorable light.
Former first lady Melania Trump has thrown her support behind former President Donald Trump's bid to win the White House next year, and in recent months has openly praised his administration's accomplishments.
But according to people in Melania Trump's inner orbit, she felt betrayed and disappointed by an array of friends, aides, and select family members, which has led her to maintain a lower public profile, The New York Times reported.
Per The Times, Melania Trump had a sometimes strained relationship with Ivanka Trump — her stepdaughter — and son-in-law Jared Kushner.
And books written by Melania Trump's former press secretary, Stephanie Grisham, and former friend and ex-aide, Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, at times painted the former first lady in unfavorable light.
Grisham's memoir, "I'll Take Your Questions Now," was a scathing indictment of the Trump administration, with the ex-press secretary alleging that she received a "vague and cold" note from Melania Trump after leaving her post following the January 6, 2021, riot at the US Capitol.
And Wolkoff's book, "Melania and Me: The Rise and Fall of My Friendship with the First Lady," also presented Melania Trump unfavorably.
"Her selfishness is so deep, it enables her to keep her distance from the rest of the world," Wolkoff wrote of the former first lady in the book.
Per the report, seeing such statements come from once-trusted friends has been a major part of her relatively low profile, even as the 2024 presidential campaign heats up. While Melania Trump has so far chosen not to join her husband on the campaign trail this year, she is poised to be a more visible presence next year.
Trump remains the frontrunner in the Republican primary, with a wide national polling lead against candidates including Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida and Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina. But many state polls are closer, reflecting the competitiveness of the race in the early-voting states of Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina.