A Newlywed Melania Trump Once Said, “If I Weren’t Beautiful, Do You Think He’d Be with Me?”

In a candid moment during a 2005 business class at New York University, Melania Trump , then a newlywed, responded to a student’s query about her marriage with Donald Trump . When asked if she would still be with him if he wasn’t wealthy, Melania’s reply was startlingly blunt: “If I weren’t beautiful, do you think he’d be with me?” After that statement, a lot of people made jokes about Melania, acting as though she was a victim of her husband and was trying to find a way out.

However, Melania has never shown that she isn’t willing to be with Trump, regardless of whether it’s a fake or a real love hidden behind a curtain. “It’s very important to know the person you’re with,” Melania stated in a 2006 interview with Parenting magazine. “And we know our roles. I didn’t want him to change the diapers or put Barron to bed. I love every minute of it,” as per Yahoo .

Melania never aimed to be just a pretty face, and she addressed the misconceptions about how people see her in an interview with Dujour. She said, “I’m not shy. I know what I want, and I’m selective.” Melania retorted, “I’m not only a beauty, I’m smart. I have brains. I’m intelligent,” in response to the male attention she gets.

Melania also stated that she has always been upfront with Donald about her views, “To be married to my husband, to someone successful as he is, he needs somebody who will tell him the truth. Somebody smart, you know. It’s not just like I’m there and I’m just doing things for him. People say I’m not on the campaign, [but] I’m very involved from home.” Melania also responded to queries about taking Donald’s last name, saying, “I married a man, and I’m kind of old-fashioned in that way.” Up until 2008, she went by Knauss-Trump in her formal last name.

Donald and Melania tied the knot in 2005, seven years after meeting. One of Melania’s favorite tales is what transpired on their first meeting. In an interview with Harper’s Bazaar , she said, “He wanted my number, but he was with a date, so of course I didn’t give it to him.” “I said, ‘I am not giving you my number; you give me yours, and I will call you.’ I wanted to see what kind of number he would give me – if it was a business number, what is this? I’m not doing business with you.”

Nonetheless, the fact remains that to date, Melania is perceived in the public eye as a woman of few words and is frequently compared to a blank canvas. Maybe the way she responded before Donald took on his political career can give a glimpse of who she really is, yet the mystery around her true identity still exists.

This article originally appeared 6 months ago.