Camilla Jessen
The US president once called her the “ultimate trophy wife”
Of all the controversies surrounding US President Donald Trump’s many comments about women, one story continues to resurface — his fixation on Princess Diana.
In his 1997 book The Art of the Comeback, published shortly after Diana’s tragic death in Paris, Trump wrote, “I never had the opportunity to court Lady Diana Spencer.”
He added, “She lit up the room with her charm, her presence. She was a genuine princess – a dream lady.”
The “Ultimate Trophy Wife”?
According to multiple media outlets, including The Daily Mail and The Sunday Times, Trump was fixated on Diana after her split from Prince Charles, viewing her as, in his eyes, “the ultimate trophy wife.”
In her Sunday Times column, former BBC journalist and close friend of Diana, Selina Scott, recalled Trump bombarding the princess with extravagant bouquets of roses and orchids.
It was the same tactic he had once used with his first wife, Ivana. But unlike Ivana, Diana reportedly did not welcome the attention.
“As the roses and orchids piled up at her apartment she became increasingly concerned,” Scott wrote. “It had begun to feel as if Trump was stalking her.”
During a private dinner with Scott, Diana is said to have voiced her discomfort:
“What am I going to do?” she asked. “He gives me the creeps.”
“Just throw them in the bin,” Scott advised. “Diana laughed.”
A Disturbing Postscript
Following Diana’s tragic death in a 1997 car crash in Paris, Trump reportedly told friends that his biggest regret was that they had never dated.
“He said that he always thought he had a chance of romance and would have had a ‘shot’ with her,” according to The Sunday Times.
But perhaps the most troubling comment came in an old Howard Stern interview from 1997, highlighted by People Magazine, in which Trump said he could have slept with Diana — if she had been tested for HIV first.
A History of Controversies
Trump’s reflections on Diana are part of a broader pattern of controversial statements and behavior regarding women.
Over the years, he has been accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women, including E. Jean Carroll, whom a court found he had sexually assaulted.
He’s also been convicted of 34 felony charges related to hush-money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels.
Though he has apologized publicly for some remarks, like the infamous Access Hollywood tape in which he bragged about grabbing women without consent, the scandals have continued to follow him.
