Melania spent days holed-up in DC hotel after news of Donald Trump's affair with Stormy Daniels broke
WASHINGTON, DC: When details of Donald Trump’s alleged affair with porn star Stormy Daniels were revealed in 2018, the former President’s wife Melania Trump spent several nights at a posh DC hotel. It was "upsetting and humiliating" for the former First Lady, a White House source revealed.
The source revealed that this is what the former President was afraid of when he allegedly arranged to pay the porn star $130K "hush money" on the eve of the 2016 election as part of a settlement about their alleged 2006 sexual encounter. "Trump was beside himself that Melania would find out the details of his indiscretion – an indiscretion with a porn star no less. He knew what the consequences could be and he would do whatever he could to keep a lid on it," said the source as per Daily Mail.
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Melania's 'relationship with President Trump became strained'
In January 2018, the arrangement was exposed, "Michael Cohen, who spent nearly a decade as a top attorney at the Trump Organization, arranged payment to the woman, Stephanie Clifford, in October 2016 after her lawyer negotiated the nondisclosure agreement with Mr Cohen," and added, "Ms Clifford, whose stage name is Stormy Daniels, has privately alleged the encounter with Mr Trump took place after they met at a July 2006 celebrity golf tournament on the shore of Lake Tahoe. Mr Trump married Melania Trump in 2005," as per The Wall Street Journal.
The source told DailyMail, "It was upsetting and humiliating; her relationship with President Trump became strained," after news of the payment broke out. The source said, "If she is seen with him in public she's very robotic, she smiles and then they go their separate ways. Melania seems to be actively limiting the time she spends with her husband and her behavior has raised eyebrows."
As per the outlet, Melania left Washington DC for West Palm Beach, Florida, just when Donald held court at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on January 18, 2018, an event Melania was originally scheduled to attend. A source in 2018 told that "Melania spends three to four days a week away from the White House and has stayed at a hotel in DC multiple times in January, often for days at a time. She also travels up to New York. She rarely comes into his West Wing office as other first ladies have done and her schedule is vague at best. She seems to be avoiding duties unless there is a very special reason." Melania's spokesperson, Stephanie Grisham, confirmed to CNN at that time that the former First Lady's decision to miss the trip to the World Economic Forum was based on "scheduling and logistical issues."
Donald Trump's arrest over alleged hush money payment
In a post on his Truth Social platform on March 18, Donald claimed he is set to be arrested over the alleged hush money payment on Tuesday, March 21. He wrote as he described the investigation as a "political witch-hunt trying to take down the leading candidate, by far, in the Republican Party. I did absolutely nothing wrong," as per Sky News. The decision on whether to file charges lies with New York City District Attorney Alvin Bragg. If he proceeds, Donald could be the first former US president to face criminal prosecution.