August M
Recent polling suggests First Lady Melania Trump’s public approval ratings remain mixed compared with several of her predecessors.
A YouGov survey placed her net approval at -16, lower than former First Lady Jill Biden’s rating of -9 and well below historical figures such as Michelle Obama and Laura Bush, who recorded positive scores during their time in the White House, reports UNILAD.
Remarks in Congress
Against that backdrop, President Donald Trump used part of his State of the Union address to highlight his wife’s policy initiatives and public role.
Speaking before lawmakers, he praised her work on youth-focused efforts and referenced her recent documentary project.
“Nobody cares more about protecting America’s youth than our first lady – she’s now a movie star, can you believe it? Who would’ve believed that?” he said.
He added: “Over the past year she’s had an incredible impact, implementing AI legislation, advancing a landmark executive order on foster care and securing 30 million dollars to launch the Melania Trump foster youth to independence initiative. It’s tremendous.”
Trump also drew laughter when he compared their political fortunes, saying: “It’s a really tremendous thing that happened and she got a lot of bipartisan support. She gets much better bipartisan support than I do. I get none, she gets a lot. Some day you’re going to have to tell me how you did that!”
Personal anecdote
The president has increasingly referenced his wife in public speeches in recent weeks.
Recalling a past appearance at the United Nations, he described a moment when an escalator stopped abruptly as they stepped on.
“I’ve had a good relationship with the UN other than when, at my last speech, they did turn off my teleprompter. I got up there, my teleprompter didn’t work,” he said.
He continued: “First I had an escalator that stopped. You know that it’s going up. Boom. It’s lucky that my movie star first lady in front of me because I put my hand on a certain part of her body and I was able to stop my fall.”
He added that Melania was “right in the proper location for me,” recounting the incident in a reflective tone.
Sources: UNILAD, YouGov
