Melania's Ex-Aide Doubles Down On Claim Trump Marriage Is 'Transactional'; Reveals What They Get From It
Melania Trump's former aide has explained what she and Donald Trump get from their alleged "transactional marriage."
Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, a former aide and friend of Melania, appeared on CNN on Tuesday amid Trump's hush money trial. She said it would be unlikely for Melania to appear in court to support her husband as she doubled down on her claim that the couple has a "transactional" union.
It's a "transactional marriage in so many ways that they both garnered so much out of their relationship," Winston Wolkoff told Jake Tapper when they talked about Trump's ongoing trial in New York.
"By marrying Donald, Melania really did finally get to be the Vogue cover model that she's always wanted to be, that supermodel, and by marrying Melania, Donald was legitimized as trying to get away from that whole playboy mentality that everyone wanted to characterize him as."
The "Melania and Me" author added that Melania "doesn't care what others feel about her." The former first lady also allegedly didn't think she had some explaining to do with the American people and would likely remain home amid her husband's trial.
"I don't think we're going to see Melania Trump accompanying Donald to court," Winston Wolkoff added. "Melania is Melania's own person, in regards, again, to a marriage that you want to consider to be something that most people are trying to still understand, don't."
She added, "I do not see her supporting him this way because she is not someone who, I think, that you can feel that humiliation without having to put yourself in front of the cameras."
Winston Wolkoff also claimed that everything the former first lady did was "staged" and she "strategically planned" her appearances and interviews.
"She is not going to put herself in a position where she's giving anyone the opportunity to say anything negative about her," she added.
Winston Wolkoff has been making the same claim about Melania and Trump's marriage for years. In a previous interview with The Washington Post, she claimed the Trumps' union was a "completely transactional marriage for both." She also alleged that the former first couple understood each other and were supportive of one another because they were the same.
"She has stood by him and will continue to stand by him because she is just like him," she said.
Meanwhile, Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, claimed that the ex-POTUS' excuse for his extremely lewd conversation about women with Billy Bush back in 2005 was his wife's idea. It was reportedly Melania who suggested to say it was "locker room talk."
"We needed to put a spin on this... that this is locker room talk, something that Melania had recommended -- that's what Melania had thought it was -- and use that in order to get control over the story and to minimize its impact on him and his campaign," Cohen said in his testimony.
