Former First Lady Melania Trump could be the answer to her husband's business problems in New York, but Melania's former chief of staff, Stephanie Grisham, told Newsweek she may have some demands for former President Donald Trump to address before she agrees to help him.
Donald is currently embattled in a fight over the real estate empire he spent decades building. Accused of New York Attorney General Letitia James of falsifying his financial disclosures to make him and the Trump Organization wealthier, Trump began his civil fraud trial on Monday—a case that's threatening to end his business career where it began.
The Trump family was already stripped of control over some of their signature properties by a judge's order last week, prompting questions as to whether Donald would sign his businesses to other family members, like Melania, who were not named as defendants in the case, and thus not subject to the ruling.
Grisham told Newsweek she doubts that Melania would agree to do so without certain conditions.
"I just don't know that she would want to take on that much responsibility unless she was guaranteed some major control or power," Grisham said.
New reports have suggested that Melania recently renegotiated her prenuptial agreement as her husband's presidential campaign moves closer to the 2024 election. Among her priorities were more money, property and a larger trust for their 17-year-old son Barron.
Grisham said on Tuesday that Barron's future could convince Melania that taking over her husband's businesses in New York is a good idea, should her son follow in the steps of his father and go on to work in real estate.
"I suppose she would potentially do it for Barron's sake so he could eventually run everything if he wanted, but I don't think she would do anything if there's a potential that she would lose any kind of money or be on the hook for paying taxes, etc.," Grisham said.
Former federal prosecutor and President of West Coast Trial Lawyers Neama Rahmani previously told Newsweek "it's not surprising" that Melania would want to keep some financial distance from her husband due to the various, costly legal challenges he faces.
"Trump may be broke by the time the presidential election is over," Rahmani said.
"He's spending tens of millions of dollars to defend himself in four separate criminal cases, and the trials haven't even started yet. Trump has been a fundraising machine, but that well will dry up if he loses the election again," he added.
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Katherine Fung is a Newsweek reporter based in New York City. Her focus is reporting on U.S. and world politics. ... Read more
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