US First Lady Melania Trump is back with a punchy eight-word opener– ‘I heard you missed me. Here I am.’– as she made her first public appearance with her husband Donald in more than a month.
This comes after a slew of headlines about the President’s close personal aide Natalie Harp after vicious innuendo leveled by Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff at a rally in Georgia last week.
Returning to the White House Rose Garden, Melania and Donald Trump appeared together to celebrate Melania’s ‘Fostering the Future’ initiative.
She announced a partnership with IndyCar and Fox Sports to expand scholarship opportunities for kids aging out of the foster care system.
The effort includes funding for programs at Indiana University and Purdue University.
The timing comes just ahead of the Freedom 250 Grand Prix in Washington, DC, that IndyCar is hosting to celebrate the nation’s birthday.
‘Fostering the Future graduates will build new companies, launch new industries, and redefine what is possible for all Americans,’ Melania declared.
‘Fostering the Future is more than an educational initiative; it is generational investment in America’s talents pipeline.’
It marked a rare public outing for the presidential couple after the two have not been spotted together since the July 19 FIFA World Cup final in New Jersey.
Their Thursday joint appearance comes amid heightened scrutiny on the President’s blonde, 35-year-old executive assistant, Harp, who by contrast is a near-constant presence at Trump’s side.
According to Daily Beast analysis, Melania has only been spotted publicly 38 times this year, while she was seen 140 times in the first 18 months of her husband’s first term.
Harp, meanwhile, is constantly seen in the Oval Office, boarding Air Force One, spending weekends with the President at his eponymous clubs and at his speaking engagements.
