A small section of Melania Trump’s roughly 15-minute speech, a highlight of the opening day of the convention in Cleveland, was similar to Michelle Obama’s 2008 speech in support of Barack Obama, then a USA senator campaigning for president.
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Meredith McIver, an in-house speech writer, has offered a new account of how Ms Trump’s Monday night speech was remarkably similar to one given by Michelle Obama.
In working with Melania Trump on her recent First Lady speech, we discussed many people who inspired her and messages she wanted to share with the American people. His wife’s speech didn’t get more press than any other in history, but it did get more than any other at the convention so far-and she stole the show just like he’s always stolen the show, in ways that have little to do with politics and nothing to do with merit.
In a statement, McIver said she jotted down some passages from Obama’s speech after Melania Trump read them out loud on the telephone as examples for inspiration. I wrote them down and later included some of the phrasing in the draft that ultimately became the final speech. “This was my mistake, and I feel awful for the chaos I have caused”, she said in a statement released by the Trump campaign. “No harm was meant”, McIver said in statement issued by the Trump Campaign. I personally admire the way Mr. Trump has handled this situation and I am grateful for his understanding.
She helped him present lessons “learned from ‘The Apprentice, ‘ his real estate empire, his position as head of the 20,000-member Trump Organization, and his most important role, as a father who has successfully taught his children the value of money and hard work”, the page continued.
For two days, the Trump campaign tried to brush aside any talk of plagiarism, calling the criticism absurd.
McIver said Trump and his family rejected an offer from her to resign after the speech controversy broke.
“I asked to put out this statement because I did not like seeing the way this was distracting from Mr. Trump’s historic campaign for president and Melania’s lovely message and presentation”, she wrote.
A speech writer for Melania Trump has apologised for passages she included in a speech to the RNC.
Mrs. Trump’s address was otherwise distinct from the speech that Mrs. Obama gave when her husband was being nominated for president.
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McIver is a co-author of some of Trump’s books.
