Donald Trump and Melania Trump reportedly competed with each other over who would have the better room at the White House, according to Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump.
The couple, who have been married since 2005 and share 20-year-old son Barron Trump, may put on a united front for the cameras, but they have faced years of speculation about their relationship, including claims that they live largely separate lives.
They reportedly have separate bedrooms in the White House and on Air Force One. Their separate lives have also been highlighted by the fact that the Slovenian-American former model doesn’t spend much time at the White House, choosing instead to stay at Trump Tower in Manhattan, where Barron attends New York University, or at the family’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, rather than spending extended periods at the White House. But apparently, not spending much time at the White House didn’t mean Melania wasn’t interested in having the best room when she was there. Keep reading to find out more…
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Donald Trump And Melania Trump Both Wanted The Best Room In The White House
New York Times journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan claimed in the book that the president and first lady both wanted to have the best décor in their separate bedrooms in the White House, and staffers "often felt caught between the two Trumps."
Donald and Melania were apparently the first presidential couple since the Nixons to regularly use separate bedrooms, and staffers seemed to sense there was fierce competition between them.
"Trump would let his wife use the master bedroom, known inside the White House as Room 219, and its dressing room; the President took Room 220, next to the Yellow Oval," the authors wrote in the book. "Once, when staff gently reminded the President that he was taking things from the Center Hall his wife had personally selected, he made clear he didn't care."
They went on: "He seemed almost to be competing with her – determined to have the better room. The staff resorted to photographing potential substitutes and sending the images to Mrs. Trump for approval."
The reporters also noted that Melania was not frequently at the White House in the weeks after her husband's second inauguration, continuing a pattern from his first term.
Donald And Melania Trump Reportedly 'Live Separate Lives'
Donald and Melania Trump have reportedly been "living separate lives" for years, with reports about their unconventional marriage dating back to well before his second term in office. Melania rarely appeared on the campaign trail, making only a handful of public appearances alongside her husband.
One source previously told People: "They were living separate lives before his second presidency. It's unlikely being under the microscope of the nation is going to change anything."
More recently, she skipped the rescheduled White House Correspondents' Dinner, didn't attend Lindsey Graham's funeral alongside her husband, and didn't publicly acknowledge President Trump's 80th birthday. Katherine Jellison, a historian of first ladies, told The New York Times: "We haven't seen such a low-profile first lady since Bess Truman."
Last year, author Michael Wolff told The Daily Beast Podcast that the couple are effectively "separated" and "live separate lives." However, the White House dismissed Wolff's claims, calling him a "lying sack of [expletive]" and "a fraud." Despite that denial, speculation about the nature of their relationship has continued.
