When Former Miss Universe Said Melania Trump is Just a 'Decoration': "I Think I Speak More English"

Former President Donald Trump has actively stayed in the spotlight since his slew of legal troubles were brought to light. Additionally, he’s also busy with his campaign for the upcoming 2024 Presidential Elections. Although the former President doesn’t appear to be fearful of the challenges that might be ahead of him, sometimes his family has to face the brunt end of things. Regardless of the relentless support he’s received from them, there are times when his wife Melania Trump in particular has had to navigate backlash received from her husband’s problems. But, she has a very diplomatic and amicable method to resolve altercations and has thus far succeeded. Nevertheless, it doesn’t cement the fact that Melania might have a few people who disagree with her. 

According to a 2016 article by Politico, the former First Lady was called out by former Miss Universe winner from 1996: Alicia Machado, after the twice-impeached former President’s lewd remarks against women surfaced around the same year. The esteemed model was known to be well-invested in her career but later had a change of heart and decided to venture into the world of politics. In an interview with Cosmopolitan Magazine, she made a comparison of her immigration story in comparison to Melania’s. A noteworthy fact is that both Machado and Melania are former models and built quite a portfolio over the years. 

Circling back to the genesis of the matter, Donald had made several remarks against Machado in the past. He had allegedly referred to her as ‘Miss Piggy’ and ‘Miss Housekeeping’ due to her heritage as per sources. Back in 2016 as per The New York Times, during the Presidential debate between contenders Hilary Clinton and Donald, the Democrat threw Machado’s name into the mix. Clinton said at the time: “She has a name, Alicia Machado, and she has become a U.S. citizen…and you can bet she’s going to vote this November.”

Shortly after Machado took to X, formerly Twitter to extend her gratitude and thanked the Democrat for her support. Moreover, the twice-impeached former President had taken to the same platform to claim that Machado was “the worst” Miss Universe and proceeded to comment about her weight. This didn’t sit well with Machado given the gravity of his statements. 

In the aforementioned interview, not only did Machado slam Donald for his remarks in the past but also threw some serious shade at his wife. She alleged Melania wasn’t doing enough to help with the position she was in. Additionally, Machado remarked: “I think I speak more English than her.” This insinuated her vocabulary was better than Melania’s despite both of them being from different countries.

Machado continued to confess that she failed to understand why a man of Trump’s stature [his general influence in society] would choose to be with Melania. She harshly remarked: “I don’t see anything about this girl. She’s a doll. She’s a decoration. That is how I see her.” Neither Donald nor Melania chose to comment on the matter either themselves or through their representatives to date.

Editor's note: This article was originally published on December 12, 2023. It has since been updated.