Melania Trump says it’s harder than you think being first lady and said that the role has opened her up for a torrent of abuse online.
“I could say that I’m the most bullied person in the world,” said Trump during an interview in Kenya with ABC reporter Tom Llamas. “One of them … if you really see what people are saying about me.”
Since taking office, Melania Trump has launched a campaign against cyberbullying called “Be Best.” Critics have mocked the program given her husband’s famously rough behavior toward his own critics on social media.
The former Slovenian model has often assumed a sphinx-like presence in the White House and her interview with Llamas, which will air in full Friday, suggests she will offer some of her most expansive comments to date.
In an earlier teaser released by ABC, the Melania opened up about the #MeToo movement, saying that while she supported women, there needed to be “hard evidence” before allegations of sexual misconduct should be taken seriously.
“Sometimes the media goes too far, the way they portray some stories. It’s not correct. It’s not right,” she said. “I do stand with women, but we need to show the evidence. You cannot just say to somebody, ‘I was sexually assaulted’ or ‘You did that to me.’”
While her husband remained in Washington, D.C., Melania embarked on her first solo trip abroad as first lady, touring a number of African nations, but she has been repeatedly criticized for her clothing choices while out there even by prominent members of the media.
“I know she said that she doesn’t like the fact that people talk about her clothes, but it was like a costume drama,” scoffed NBC’s Andrea Mitchell on Monday “It looked like ‘Death on the Nile,” she added, referencing the 1978 Agatha Christie film starring Mia Farrow and Peter Ustinov.
Melania Trump has also made news by wearing a pith helmet, as well as jackets and for once planting a tree in pair of ferocious stiletto heels.