First lady Melania Trump's nearly one-month absence from the public eye has stoked wild conspiracy theories about where she could be and the status of her health. In tweets Wednesday morning, President Donald Trump rattled off some of the more outrageous rumors that have circulated about his wife.
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Add Donald Trump as an interest to stay up to date on the latest Donald Trump news, video, and analysis from ABC News.The tweets came as the first lady attended her first event open to the public and press in 27 days at a briefing Wednesday afternoon at Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters.
Trump tweeted it was falsely reported she faced "near death," had a "facelift," left the White House, or was abused by the president, and blamed "the Fake News Media" of being "unfair" and "so vicious" to the first lady after her recovery from surgery to treat a benign kidney condition.
The Fake News Media has been so unfair, and vicious, to my wife and our great First Lady, Melania. During her recovery from surgery they reported everything from near death, to facelift, to left the W.H. (and me) for N.Y. or Virginia, to abuse. All Fake, she is doing really well!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 6, 2018
MSNBC's Joe Scarborough quickly pointed out that the president tweeted Scarborough's then-fiance and co-host Mika Brezinski had a facelift, which she denied.
I agree that it would be “vicious” and “unfair” to lie about a loved one having a facelift for the purpose of causing pain and embarrassment. Mr. President, can you imagine anyone would be so cruel to do such a thing? https://t.co/zfqjt1LKw2
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) June 6, 2018
At FEMA headquarters, the president acknowledged the first lady's health problems as she sat by his side in a khaki jacket. "She went through a little rough patch but she's doing great," the president said. "We're very proud of her, she's done a fantastic job as first lady. People love you. The people of our country love you. Thank you, honey." Melania Trump smiled bu said nothing.
Over the course of the first lady's recovery, the White House released little information about the status of her health or where she was beyond telling reporters she was "doing well." Mrs. Trump underwent a surgical procedure at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on May 14, and remained hospitalized for almost a week. Mrs. Trump's Communications Director, Stephanie Grisham, said the procedure was a success and without complication.
Unlike her husband, the first lady enjoys keeping a low profile and avoids the media spotlight. But her silence for almost one month did not help to silence rumors and conspiracy theories from brewing online. The last time Mrs. Trump was seen in public was May 10, when she joined the president at Joint Base Andrews to welcome home three American hostages freed from North Korea.
ABC News was first to report that the first lady has no plans to join the president on his upcoming high profile trips to Quebec for the G7 Summit or to Singapore for the summit with North Korea.