Two weeks ago, The Wall Street Journal reported that Donald Trump allegedly paid $130,000 to former porn star Stephanie Clifford, who went professionally by the name “Stormy Daniels,” in exchange for her silence about a purported sexual encounter the two had in 2006.
The alleged affair would have taken place four months after first lady Melania Trump had given birth to their son, Barron Trump. Since the story broke, there have been multiple signs to fuel speculation that things have taken a turn for the worse between the president and first lady.
First, Melania canceled her plans to accompany her husband to the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, and the couple showed no signs of having celebrated their 13-year anniversary on Monday. Neither of the pair made any public acknowledgement of the occasion on social media or anywhere else in the press.
On the anniversary of Trump’s inauguration, Melania tweeted a photo of herself with an escort at the ceremony, rather than one of herself with the president. Her message also praised the many people she’d met “throughout our great country & the world” but said nothing about her husband.
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This has been a year filled with many wonderful moments. I’ve enjoyed the people I’ve been lucky enough to meet throughout our great country & the world! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/MMRi72ENd0
— Melania Trump 45 Archived (@FLOTUS45) January 20, 2018
The Daily Mail also reported that the first lady has been staying in a hotel in D.C. following the reports of her husband’s infidelity.
One Melania aide, Stephanie Grisham, tried to discredit the stories with a Friday tweet, writing, “BREAKING:The laundry list of salacious & flat-out false reporting about Mrs. Trump by tabloid publications & TV shows has seeped into ‘main stream media’ reporting. She is focused on her family & role as FLOTUS – not the unrealistic scenarios being peddled daily by the fake news.”
BREAKING:The laundry list of salacious & flat-out false reporting about Mrs. Trump by tabloid publications & TV shows has seeped into "main stream media" reporting. She is focused on her family & role as FLOTUS – not the unrealistic scenarios being peddled daily by the fake news.
— Stephanie Grisham 45 Archived (@StephGrisham45) January 26, 2018
Melania’s team has cited “scheduling” issues and other standard excuses for her recent actions, but it’s hard to believe she wouldn’t be bothered by the reports — especially after a second porn star claimed she’d also had a sexual encounter with Trump.
This would be far from the first time signs of tension between President Trump and his wife are obvious to the public. She has visibly blocked his attempts to hold her hand in public numerous times and looked upset at multiple moments during the last year’s inauguration ceremony.
