Melania Trump Was Questioned About People Calling Donald a 'Jerk, Racist & Sexist': "It's Normal..."

President-elect Donald Trump has been accused numerous times of being a fascist leader. John F. Kelly, Trump’s longest-serving chief of staff, has claimed that the Republican leader admired Hitler. When these pressing questions were put to the former First Lady, Melania Trump, she called herself 'thick-skinned.' "From stupid to demagogue, jerk, idiot, racist, sexist, race-baiting, xenophobic, vulgarian in chief, textbook narcissist, it goes on. What do you make of all this when you hear it?" MSNBC Morning Joe's host, Mika Brzezinski quizzed Melania during her 2016 interview. "It's normal that will come up. We are prepared for that. We have a thick skin, and we know that people will judge him, and people will call names. And they don't give him enough credit," the former model candidly replied. 

According to The New York Times, if given the chance, Kelly believes Trump would rule like a tyrant, “Certainly the former president is in the far-right area, he’s certainly an authoritarian, admires people who are dictators — he has said that. So he certainly falls into the general definition of fascist, for sure.” Kelly added, “He certainly prefers the dictator approach to government," highlighting Trump’s alleged authoritarian tendencies. However, the incoming First Lady came to the defense of her husband and dismissed claims that he praised Adolf Hitler during her recent appearance on Fox & Friends. 

As per USA Today, Melania criticized the media for fanning false allegations, "It's terrible," she said. She continued, "He is not Hitler and his supporters stand behind him because they want to see the country successful. We see what kind of support he has," she said. According to The Hill, the President-elect addressed the claims, vehemently denying that he believed in Nazi principles and criticizing those who labeled him as a fascist.

“You know, years ago, my father — I had a great father, tough guy — he used to always say, ‘Never use the word Nazi. Never use that word.’ And he’d say, ‘Never use the word Hitler. Don’t use that word,’” Trump recalled during an Atlanta rally in October. “And yet they use that word freely. Both words. They say, ‘He’s Hitler,’ and then they say, ‘He’s a Nazi,’” he continued. “I’m not a Nazi. I’m the opposite of a Nazi.” 

As per The Guardian, Democrats in New York likened Trump's October rally in Madison Square Garden to a notorious Nazi rally that took place there in the years preceding World War II. Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal even called for the event to be canceled. "Let’s be clear. Allowing Trump to hold an event at MSG is equivalent to the infamous Nazi rally at Madison Square Garden on February 20, 1939," he tweeted on X. 

However, New York Republicans immediately refuted the allegations, accusing the Democrats of using Nazi rhetoric to target Trump, “Referring to a peaceful rally for the leading candidate for President of the United States as a ‘Nazi Rally’ is not only a disgusting comparison, it is a gross escalation of the dangerous rhetoric in the wake of two direct attempts on President Donald Trump’s life,” Senator Rob Ortt issued in an official statement.