Donald and Melania Trump clearly have an unconventional marriage, rocked with scandal and controversy.
But even if they sometimes seem poorly matched, insiders say that when push comes to shove,
they're actually perfect for each other.
From the time that Donald and Melania Trump began dating in 1998, there've been whispers
that the two weren't meant to be.
At the time, Donald was dating multiple women — including supermodel Kara Young — and
didn't know who to choose.
As chronicled in the book The Art of Her Deal: The Untold Story of Melania Trump by Mary
Jordan, Donald reached out to one of his associates to ask which woman he preferred.
Recalling this incident, the associate told Jordan,
"I said 'Kara' because I never really liked Melania that much."
Despite this advice, Donald continued seeing Melania.
Maybe he was simply following his heart.
In his conversation with Jordan, Donald's former associate shared,
"I could tell that was not the answer he wanted.
He had made up his mind.
He said Melania was 'central casting.'"
Apparently, the attraction was mutual.
"What was it that you saw in Donald when you met him.
Or fell in love with him?"
"His mind.
Amazing mind."
According to photographer Antoine Verglas, Donald and Melania were constantly making
eyes at each other.
Verglas told Jordan,
"She was always looking at him like he was God, and he was looking at her like she was
a goddess."
Although not everyone in their circles supported the match, Donald and Melania are believed
to have felt a strong connection from the beginning.
They say opposites attract, and, in some ways, this is true for Donald and Melania Trump.
Family friend Philip Bloch has gone public with his opinion that the two are nothing
alike.
He told Mary Jordan,
"[Melania] is gracious and polite and steady.
She's the complete opposite of him, really."
But in spite of their differences, it seems that Donald and Melania actually share some
basic values.
In an interview with GQ, Melania said,
"I myself am similar to my husband.
Do you understand what I mean?
So is my dad; he is a family man, he has tradition, he was hardworking.
So is my husband."
She also compared Donald's sense of morality to that of her father, Viktor Knavs,
"They have the same values."
This could very well be true.
Like the former president, who is famously litigious, Knavs once sued an ex-girlfriend
for filing a paternity claim.
Both men have also faced scandals involving their tax filings and enjoy owning nice things.
As Melania put it to GQ,
"[My father] likes quality."
And, of course, Donald is famous for his lavish lifestyle.
According to Trump family expert Mary Jordan, both Donald and Melania enjoy having their
alone time.
Speaking to The Guardian, Jordan explained,
"I don't know any couple that spends as much time apart.
They are often in the same building, but nowhere near each other [...] She is a loner.
He is a loner.
They're perfectly happy to be separated."
Melania has said as much.
According to GQ, the former first lady once told the press,
"He is a very understanding husband.
If I say, 'I need an hour, I'm going to take a bath,' or I'm having a massage, he doesn't
have nothing against it.
He's very supportive in that way."
In 2016, she told The Washington Post that Donald also requires a lot of personal time,
which he spends on his own projects, saying,
"We like to do what we like to do, and we give ourselves and each other space.
I allowed him to have his passion and his dreams come true, and he let me do the same."
"I am my own person.
He is his own person.
And I think that's very important.
I don't want to change him.
He doesn't want to change me."
In other words, both Donald and Melania value their own independence.
According to Mary Jordan, Melania was so determined to keep Donald on the hook, that she read
all 17 of the ghostwritten books Trump has published about his life to gain insight into
why his previous marriages failed.
She figured out what he wanted and delivered.
As Jordan puts it,
"Melania praised him constantly.
She had few friends and a small family and seemed focused solely on Trump.
She was always impeccably dressed, her hair and makeup just so, never sloppy, always camera-ready."
Even during a brief period of time early in their relationship when they were separated,
Melania kept her eye on the prize.
According to Jordan,
"She continued to do exactly what Trump liked during their breakup period.
She stayed in; she dated no one."
"I will stand by man."
One of the former first lady's friends told Jordan that Melania was trying to prove her
loyalty to her then-future husband.
Apparently, it worked.
Ever since he began campaigning for the 2016 election, Donald Trump has been a polarizing
figure.
Over the years, he's become famous for making what are, at times, outlandish claims — many
of which have been proven categorically false.
But even in the face of plenty of evidence to the contrary, Melania has supported much
of what he has said.
"Do you believe he probably was born in America?
No."
"I say he might have been."
One such instance is Donald's unfounded claim that former president Barack Obama was born
outside of the U.S. While Donald faced plenty of backlash for his comments, Melania appeared
on the Joy Behar Show to say,
"It's not only Donald who wants to see [Obama's birth certificate], it's American people who
voted for him and who didn't vote for him.
They want to see that."
Behar pointed out that the birth certificate is, in fact, available to the public, noting
a hard copy available in Chicago and a digital one accessible online.
To this, Melania only doubled down on her husband's lie, saying,
"We feel it's different than birth certificate."
Her intense support for Donald's birther claim seems to indicate that Melania is on board
with some of the more controversial aspects of her husband's political persona, and he
knows it.
Mary Jordan told The Guardian,
"She's the first call he makes after a speech or a rally."
This is probably not a coincidence.
In the world of politics, a marriage is much more than just a union between two lovers
— it's a way to get ahead.
Historically, a president without a life partner has been nearly unelectable.
There have only been two single presidents in American history, and one of them — Grover
Cleveland — tied the knot during his first term in office.
The other bachelor president was James Buchanan, who was elected in 1857.
Because of this, it would be inadvisable, politically speaking, for Donald and Melania
Trump to part ways.
As a political candidate, Donald is much stronger with her by his side.
During the 2016 election, she played a major role in convincing women to vote for her controversial
husband.
And, during the 2024 election, it's been said that she gives Donald advice on how to appear
more presidential — including, apparently, a firm warning against dancing off the stage.
"I tell him my opinions.
I tell him what I think.
Sometimes he listens.
Sometimes he don't."
Of course, it's hard to say exactly how a divorce would impact Donald's political ambitions.
However, Melania's willingness to campaign for her husband – however occasionally – has
likely won him votes in the past.
And the Trump campaign isn't likely to want to risk what would happen were she to retract
her support in the future.
Couples who overcome challenges together often stick together, and when it comes to Donald
and Melania Trump, this seems to be the case.
According to Kate Andersen Brower, an expert on American first ladies, presidential couples
who've faced scandals together often leave the White House with a deeper bond.
Speaking to The Sunday Times, Brower explained,
"When President Nixon resigned, I think it brought the Nixons closer together.
[...] When you feel like you're under siege, it does make some marriages stronger.
Melania is one of the few people who hasn't abandoned Trump."
"People come out saying lies and not true stuff."
Mary Jordan largely seems to agree with this assessment.
In her own interview with The Sunday Times, Jordan shared,
"The reports of his infidelities, his affairs with Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal, infuriated
Melania.
[...] But what I heard over and over again was that a bunker mentality developed, and
she felt closer to him because both of them were taking criticism."
Of course, outside the world of politics, there are other reasons why Melania remains
with Donald Trump.
One of these could very well stem from the lack of stability she experienced during her
childhood.
The former first lady was raised in communist Slovenia, where it was difficult to experience
any sort of consistency in her day-to-day life.
She grew up in a basic apartment without any frills.
According to GQ, Melania's late mother, Amalija Knavs, would spend the evenings after work
sewing clothes by hand so her daughters would have something nice to wear.
Because Melania comes from such a precarious past, many of her friends say it's unlikely
she would ever risk her current financial stability with a divorce.
As society publicist R Couri Hay told The Sunday Times,
"The likelihood is 99.99% they will stay together.
I'd truly be shocked if Melania formally separated and divorced from her husband [...] When she
married, she wanted stability, romantic stability, financial stability, and through it all the
one thing still standing is that marriage."
Finances, though, aren't the only reason Melania stays with Donald Trump.
Even if they do divorce, the assumption is that she would do quite well monetarily.
As several high-powered lawyers told Town & Country, Melania stands to come away with
quite a bit if she and Donald do, eventually, part ways.
That being said, it's believed that the couple's son, Barron Trump, could suffer if his parents
were to split.
In the past, Donald has referred to Barron as, quote, "Melania's son," bringing into
question just how much fatherly feeling he has for his youngest child.
Because of this, some sources say that Melania has been working hard to secure a trust fund
for her only child.
Speaking to Page Six about Melania's prenup negotiations, an insider revealed that Melania
is most concerned with her son's financial future, saying,
"This is at least the third time Melania has renegotiated the terms of her marital agreement
[...] Melania is most concerned about maintaining and increasing a substantial trust for their
son."
A separate source confirmed this, stating,
"From what I understand — there's a specific amount at minimum that Barron is supposed
to obtain."