Melania Trump is not your conventional First Lady, and she’s not even trying to hide that at this point. Still, her infrequent appearances at events have sparked lots of questions, like: Where is she? What is she doing with her time? And how does she get away with this?
Author Michael Wolff has shared his theories and, in a recent Substack article, even claimed that “it appears she may never have spent a night at the White House during her husband’s second term and is now firmly ensconced in New York City.”
People have argued that she doesn’t seem particularly interested in her First Lady role.
And it’s not just because of her tendency to shy away from public appearances. After rumors that she seemed to be quiet-quitting this role escalated, Wolff accused her of “casual disregard for the role.” He also wrote that “she doesn’t even try” to do her job, which he argued is “to provide a public model of domestic propriety and to support good causes—that, in addition to living on the premises.”
Of course, it’s not that Melania does absolutely nothing with her time. She’s a businesswoman with her own documentary, book, and NFTs. In 2025, she earned more than $17 million, per Business Insider.
In his Substack article, Wolff wrote that “Melania has managed to achieve something no first lady has ever achieved, not living in the White House—nowhere near it; a separation by any other name—and creating a multi-million-dollar business for herself by monetizing her first lady brand.”
And she doesn’t seem overly interested in her husband, either.
Speculation about Melania’s whereabouts has also included many rumors about her marriage to President Donald Trump. But Wolff argues that Melania isn’t even really pretending to be more interested or committed than she is. He wrote that a Trump aide previously told him, “She hates (her husband’s) f—ing guts.” And she isn’t necessarily trying to hide that from anyone.
“In other words, what you see is actually what you get,” he wrote. “It’s a new kind of pretend, a particular Trump-style pretend. You pretend so little, and make such a limited effort at it, that everybody knows you’re pretending. Therefore you’re not really pretending.”
During a recent appearance, Melania addressed her light summer schedule.
In June and July, Melania attended only five events in total, and two were sporting events, according to a report from The Daily Beast. When she spoke at the White House Rose Garden on August 20, it was her first public appearance in over a month. She even commented on this. She started her speech with, “Good afternoon. I heard you missed me? Here I am.”
After that appearance, The Washington Examiner alleged that Melania would likely break tradition again soon by skipping the Republican National Convention. The publication claimed a White House official confirmed that Melania would not attend. However, it didn’t offer any explanation for her absence.
READ NEXT: Body Language Expert Explains Awkward Tension Between Donald Trump And Melania
