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Who is Melania Trump's ex-friend Stephanie Winston Wolkoff? Internet demands her #MelaniaTapes to be released

‘Melania & Me’ by Stephanie Winston Wolkoff has been making headlines for various revelations about the FLOTUS and the writer allegedly has recordings of the quotes in the book

President Donald Trump is always in the news, but now, at least for the past couple of days, he is sharing the spotlight with his wife Melania. A new book titled ‘Melania and Me: The Rise and Fall of My Friendship with the First Lady’ by Stephanie Winston Wolkoff has been making news for various revelations about the FLOTUS. Stephanie is Melania’s former friend and adviser.

While talking to ABC's 'Good Morning America' on August 31, Stephanie said: “The day that the 'Access Hollywood' tape came out she reached out to have lunch. Now, if any other human being or any other one of my friends I would have expected to see them in tears, right? She was smiling. It was as if nothing happened.”

The book also reportedly claims that Melania once boasted that she was “driving liberals crazy” with her infamous 'I really don't care, do u?' jacket. Melania had sparked a firestorm when she wore an infamous green jacket that said 'I really don’t care, do u?' on its back when she toured the Texas border and held children who had been separated from their parents at the border. She reportedly brushed off the backlash saying, “I'm driving liberals crazy. You know what? They deserve it.” The Zara jacket was priced at $39.

The memoir releases on Tuesday, September 1. According to the New York Times, this is the third unauthorized book on Melania, after ‘Free, Melania’ by Kate Bennet in 2019 and ‘The Art of Her Deal’ by Mary Jordan, which was published earlier this year.

Who is Stephanie Winston Wolkoff?

The 49-year-old author is a former director of special events at Vogue, former fashion director of Mercedes-Benz New York Fashion Week at Lincoln Center, executive producer and chief creative officer for the Trump inauguration, and ex-Trusted Advisor to the first lady, according to NYT. She was born to Barbara Batinkoff and photographer Barry Batinkoff. Stephanie grew up in the Catskills and has two brothers, one of whom is actor Randall Batinkoff. After her parents got divorced, her mother married Bruce Winston, the son of the jeweler Harry Winston. The former friend of FLOTUS was adopted by him and she also took his name. She is married to real estate developer David Wolkoff and the couple resides in Upper East Side with their three children.

According to NYT, Melania and Stephanie met in 2003. The report states she and Melania became friends at that time and Stephanie was present at the Trump wedding. She also attended FLOTUS’s baby shower. Melania was one of Stephanie’s guests at the latter’s 40th birthday celebration. The report further states the two even had monthly lunches at places like the Mark Hotel in Manhattan and sometimes, very rarely though, they met up as couples.

After Trump’s inauguration, she joined Melania’s office, even though it was an unpaid job. In February 2018, she resigned amid allegations that her firm was paid nearly $26 million for the inauguration. More than a year later, she told NYT, “Was I fired? No. Did I personally receive $26 million or $1.6 million? No. Was I thrown under the bus? Yes.”

According to an Associated Press report, the White House criticized the book as “full of mistruths and paranoia.” The report further states that during an interview on MSNBC’s ‘The Rachel Maddow Show’, Stephanie said, “I’ve been accused of taping my friend, as the White House said, and how horrible of a human being I am for doing that.” She added, “And they're right. If she was my friend, it would be horrible. But Melania and the White House had accused me of criminal activity and publicly shamed and fired me and made me their scapegoat. At that moment in time, that's when I pressed record. She was no longer my friend and she was willing to let them take me down.”

The report quotes Stephanie Grisham, chief of staff and spokesperson for the FLOTUS, dismissing the claims of the book and saying, “Anybody who secretly tapes their self-described best friend is, by definition, dishonest. The book is not only full of mistruths and paranoia, it is based on some imagined need for revenge. Wolkoff builds herself up while belittling and blaming everyone she worked with, yet she still managed to be the victim. Sadly, this is a deeply insecure woman whose need to be relevant defies logic.”

Social media users weighed in on the news and #MelaniaTapes started trending on Twitter. The Maddow Blog, a page described as 'Rachel Maddow and her staff have a blog. This is its voice on Twitter', posted the clip from Stephanie's interview and wrote: “'Melania and the White House had accused me of criminal activity, and publicly shamed and fired me, and made me their scapegoat. At that moment in time, that's when I pressed record.' -Stephanie Winston Wolkoff on whether she has recordings of the quotes in her new book.”

One said, “Oooh weee.... You think Trump and his mini-stroke tirade today because of @nytmike's book was something, just wait until tomorrow when he goes off on the #MelaniaTapes. That's really gonna be something.”

Another said, “I keep hearing tapes but I’m not seeing any releases. #MelaniaTapes”

Another said, “Someone needs to start a go fund me page for the #MelaniaTapes to be released.”

One stated, “Wow! If the #MelaniaTapes are the October Suprise in September. Can't wait for the October Suprise! It should be a doozie!”