Biographer Michael Wolff is alleging that First Lady Melania Trump has not spent a night at the White House since President Donald Trump returned to office, describing an arrangement in which she is largely based in New York and operates a business that reported millions of dollars in profit. The White House forcefully rejected Wolff's account.
Writing Monday on his Substack publication Howl, Wolff said Melania Trump is "firmly ensconced in New York City" and claimed that her limited presence in Washington reflects a longstanding private arrangement between the first lady and the president.
Wolff, whose previous books about Trump have drawn repeated denials from the president and his allies, said questions about Melania's role were already circulating among campaign officials before Trump returned to the White House.
"By the end of the campaign, aides, when queried, were actively seeking new language for the situation: 'She'll be more like a part-time first lady'," Wolff wrote.
The White House disputed Wolff's credibility and characterization of the first lady's living arrangements. Spokesperson Davis Ingle called Wolff a "professional scumbag and serial liar whose judgment has been warped by political animosity."
The dispute comes amid continued scrutiny of Melania Trump's comparatively limited public schedule in Washington. Her appearances have been less frequent than those of many previous first ladies, and a monthlong absence this summer generated renewed speculation about how she is approaching the role during Trump's second presidency.
Wolff also tied Melania's relative independence from Washington to her commercial activities. He wrote that she disclosed net profits of $17 million last year from a Melania-branded business and argued that she has developed an unusually independent model for a sitting first lady.
"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 monetising her first lady brand," Wolff wrote.
He added: "With what leverage did she negotiate this deal? What else has she managed to get?"
Wolff's account goes further, portraying the first couple as having maintained significant personal distance for years. Recalling discussions with Trump aides during the 2024 campaign, Wolff said one senior adviser gave him a far harsher explanation for Melania's limited campaign appearances.
"'She hates his f-ing guts,' is what a top Trump aide said to me," Wolff claimed. "In other words, what you see is actually what you get."
That assertion is attributed solely to Wolff's unnamed source and hasn't been independently substantiated in the supplied material. The White House's broader response rejects Wolff's portrayal of the Trump family and argues that his reporting is driven by political hostility.
Melania Trump returned to the White House after her extended absence this summer and acknowledged that she had been away. "I heard you missed me. Here I am," she told attendees at an event, later adding, "Here I am! Welcome to the White House."
Wolff argues that the first couple's public presentation is notable precisely because relatively little effort is made to project the traditional image of a presidential marriage. He described that dynamic as a "particular Trump-style pretence."
"You pretend so little, and make such a limited effort at it, that everybody knows you're pretending. Therefore, you're not really pretending," Wolff wrote.
He also cited the couple's public behavior around personal milestones. Wolff noted that Trump posted extensively on Truth Social on Melania's birthday in April but did not include a straightforward public birthday greeting to her.
When Trump turned 80 in June, Melania likewise did not make a highly visible public celebration or social-media tribute, according to the account.
