October surprise: Putin and Melania are hindering Trump's path to the presidency.

How Melania Encouraged Trump to Run for President

Slovenian supermodel Melania Knauss moved to America in 1996. Just two years later, she met Donald Trump. At that time, the eccentric billionaire was married for the second time, but his marriage was crumbling. He had not lived with his wife for over a year and was ready for a divorce.

In her memoirs, Melania reveals that Donald Trump reminds her of her father, as they are the same age. The former First Lady is 24 years younger than her husband. However, the age difference does not stop her from giving him advice.

Although Melania claims that Donald often does not heed her opinion, she is the only close person whose criticism he listens to carefully. Before participating in the presidential elections for the first time in 2000, Trump consulted with his wife. Her support was reportedly decisive when he decided to run in the primaries for the “Reform Party”. That time, Donald Trump did not succeed, but he did not give up on his dream of becoming President of the United States.

Before marrying, Melania and Donald broke up twice. In both cases, the conflicts arose from Trump's flirtations with other women. However, after seven years together, Melania married Donald. A year later, she gave birth to a boy, Barron.

Having four children from two previous marriages, Donald Trump made it clear to his young wife that he would place all responsibility for raising their son on her. He was more interested in his own business and political ambitions, which Melania supported wholeheartedly.

In her book, Melania recounted how she pushed her husband to participate in the 2015 presidential election. According to her, Trump often talked about his desire to run but was hesitant because he did not believe in his success. Melania issued an ultimatum, stating that he must permanently stop discussing political ambitions if he could not decide to enter the race. This worked—Trump ran as a Republican candidate, despite having supported Democrats for many years.

A month before the 2015 elections, Trump faced an October surprise that could have permanently derailed his political career. The Washington Post published a video of a private conversation between Donald Trump and television host Billy Bush. In the video, recorded in 2005, Trump boastfully claims that it is very easy for him to seduce any woman because he is rich and famous.

“I’m attracted to beauty... I just go up and kiss them (the women). I don’t wait. If you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything,” Trump said at the time.

Surprisingly, Melania reacted quite calmly to the video's content. She was more concerned that this incident could hinder her husband's dream of becoming president. She advised him not to make excuses but to immediately issue a public statement and apologize for his behavior. Trump listened and apologized, stating that it was “just locker room talk and empty words.”

After defeating Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump became president, and Melania became the First Lady, the second in the nation's history to be born outside of the United States. The first was Louisa Adams, the English wife of John Adams, who won the election in 1825.

Melania Does Not Want to Be First Lady Again

Immediately after Donald Trump won the 2016 election, Melania renegotiated their prenuptial agreement under more favorable terms. The new marital contract stipulated that in the event of a divorce, her son Barron would receive a significant portion of the money Donald Trump earned building his business empire. This sparked rumors that Melania and Donald's marriage was on the brink of collapse. However, in her memoirs, Donald Trump's wife dispelled these rumors, assuring that she still loves her husband and has always found common ground with him.

Nevertheless, in the book, Melania stated that she does not aspire to be First Lady again. Moreover, she confessed that she does not fully support her husband’s campaign platform. Melania recalled her foreign origins and admitted that she is not a fan of the hardline anti-immigration rhetoric—a key part of Donald Trump's presidential campaign. Additionally, in her book, Melania openly spoke about the abortion ban advocated by Donald Trump and his allies in the Republican Party.

“A fundamental right of a woman to personal freedom and her life gives her the right to terminate a pregnancy if she wishes. It is extremely important to guarantee women the right to decide whether they want to have children based on their own beliefs, without interference or pressure from the government,” Melania Trump wrote in her autobiography.

This position closely mirrors the campaign promises of Democratic candidate Kamala Harris, who criticizes Donald Trump for “trying to take reproductive freedom away from women” and guarantees that she will do everything in her power to ensure that abortions remain legal.

Despite some of her views diverging from his beliefs, Donald Trump recommends his supporters buy Melania's book. Trump himself does not hesitate to admit that he “has not had the time to read it yet.” He claims that he sees no issue with Melania having differing views on abortion.

“We talked about it. And I said: you should write what you believe,” he said in an interview with Fox News last week.

Melania supports her husband when he claims that he would have won the election against Joe Biden in 2019 “if the votes were counted fairly.” In her book, she does not state that the election was rigged, as Donald Trump believes. However, the former First Lady is convinced that many violations prevented a fair determination of the winner.

What Connects Trump and Putin?

Donald Trump's stubborn refusal to accept defeat in the last election has already led his opponents in the Democratic Party to accuse the 45th president of the United States of dictatorial tendencies. Even some members of the Republican Party occasionally label Trump as a threat to American democracy.

General Mark Milley, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during Trump's presidency, not only considers him a dictator but also calls him a fascist. In his new book “Wartime,” esteemed investigative journalist Bob Woodward, who has been writing about American presidents for over 50 years, quotes Mark Milley: “No one has ever been as dangerous to this country as Donald Trump. He is a real fascist. Trump is the most dangerous person for this country.”

Even some Republicans urging votes for Donald Trump in the presidential election privately acknowledge to Bob Woodward that dictatorship is the best model of governance for Donald Trump. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham confessed to Woodward that he has repeatedly asked Trump to stop mentioning the past election and to acknowledge that he lost to Joe Biden in a fair contest five years ago. However, Trump ignores the advice of his fellow party members and continues to insist that the election results were rigged.

“Going to Trump’s residence in Mar-a-Lago is like going to North Korea. Everyone stands up and applauds every time Trump walks in,” Lindsey Graham told Bob Woodward.

Trump's disdain for democratic institutions and his inclination towards dictatorial methods of governance instills in him a respect for other dictators around the world, such as Vladimir Putin, with whom he still maintains close ties. One of Donald Trump's aides told Bob Woodward that his boss had at least seven phone conversations with Putin after leaving the Oval Office.

Former CIA Director John Brennan believes that during one of these conversations, Vladimir Putin may have convinced Donald Trump to use his influence on House Speaker Mike Johnson to block Congress from providing aid to Ukraine for six months. Brennan also believes that Trump's contacts with Putin violate U.S. law and should be subject to a special investigation.

American media unanimously criticize Trump for his friendship with the leader of a country that threatens U.S. national security. Trump himself rejects any accusations, insisting that Bob Woodward's new book is “purely false.” Whether the allegations of ties with the Kremlin will affect voters' decisions to vote for Donald Trump on November 5 remains unknown.