Clearing the air. President Donald Trump addressed wife Melania Trump’s controversial wardrobe choice while visiting migrant children separated from their families at the U.S.-Mexico border.
The first lady, 48, made headlines when she sported a Zara jacket with the message, “I Really Don’t Care, Do U?’ written on the back in bold white letters while en route to meet with the children in Texas on Thursday, June 21. Although many were taken aback, President Trump, 72, addressed the backlash shortly after.
“‘I REALLY DON’T CARE, DO U?’ written on the back of Melania’s jacket, refers to the Fake News Media,” the commander in chief tweeted hours after his wife’s trip. “Melania has learned how dishonest they are, and she truly no longer cares!”
Before the Celebrity Apprentice alum clarified the jacket’s meaning, a former senior Democratic National Committee adviser, Zac Petkanas, tweeted his disapproval. “This is not a joke … I am speechless,” he wrote. Added MSNBC host Chris Hayes: “Wait, wait, wait. I just got wifi to work on my flight. This Melania jacket thing cannot be real. Can’t. I’m choosing not to believe it.”
Melania’s press secretary, Stephanie Grisham, responded to the backlash in a statement to Us Weekly. “It’s a jacket. There was no hidden message,” she said of the olive-colored item, which is already sold out. “After today’s important visit to Texas, I hope the media isn’t going to choose to focus ojn her wardrobe (much like her high heels last year.” (The Slovenia native turned heads in August 2017 when she wore stilettos while working with Hurricane Harvey survivors.)
Grisham later added via Twitter: “Today’s visit w the children in Texas impacted @flotus greatly. If media would spend their time & energy on her actions & efforts to help kids — rather than speculate & focus on her wardrobe — we could get so much accomplished on behalf of children. #SheCares #ItsJustAJacket.”
The former model’s trip to the Upbring New Hope Children’s Shelter came one day after the president signed an executive order to reverse his administration’s policy about separating families at the border. Many celebrities, including George Clooney, Chrissy Teigen and Jimmy Kimmel, have publicly condemned the policy that caused at least 2,000 children to be separated from their parents.
