When Laura Benanti Spoofed as Melania on ‘The Late Show’ and Reacted to the Stormy Daniels Scandal

Actress Laura Benanti has gained notoriety for imitating former First Lady, Melania Trump, on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. In the summer of 2016, Benanti made her debut as Melania on the show after several critics pointed out that passages from Melania's RNC speech seemed to have been lifted from Michelle Obama's 2008 DNC speech. As per Vanity Fair, when the Stormy Daniels scandal made the rounds in 2018, Colbert invited Benanti once again to spoof Melania. “I mean, what kind of disgusting pig monster would cheat on his wife with a porn star right after she gives birth and then pay hush money to this Cranky Ponchos?” the actress asked. Playing Melania, she joked, “Everyone here thinks it’s a lie, and I agree. Hashtag #MeToo." 

The 'fake' Melania emphasized to Colbert that she was not at all disturbed. “In fact, if my husband’s watching, I have a message. Donald, time’s up...on your cheeseburger! It’s ready! Happy anniversary, sweetheart!” What did Trump buy her for the occasion, Colbert wondered? "A hat! But not a 'MAGA' hat—this one," 'Melania' noted. "Let’s just say it’s very pink, and has a distinct shape."

In reality, a former close aide revealed that Melania was 'humiliated' by the Daniels scandal. “I spent a ton of time with her when the news was breaking about Stormy Daniels,” Stephanie Grisham said while appearing on CNN Out Front. “And she didn’t take it lightly at all.” “We went to the State of the Union separately. She refused to walk out to Marine One with him because she didn’t want to be like Hillary Clinton, standing by her man,” explained Grisham,

Grisham, before joining Trump's administration as Press Secretary, served as the First Lady's Chief of Staff. She added, “She [Melania] is a very independent and strong woman.” Grisham was referring to the 1998 picture of Hillary, Bill Clinton, and Chelsea holding hands as they headed to Marine One, right after Bill's extramarital affair with Monica Lewinsky became public news.

Before the New York trial, Grisham expressed her belief that Melania would 'push' her husband, Donald Trump to testify in public during the hush money trial. “This is very, very embarrassing for her. It’s humiliating for her,” she said. “And I can guarantee you that she’s not happy right now and that he’s quite worried about that.” Speaking about Trump, Grisham shared, "This is very personal to him, this is an embarrassment to him, for with his family." As per The Daily Mail, in her book, I'll Take Your Questions Now, Grisham recalled Melania's refusal to speak about the scandal. She recounted that Melania had asserted, "'This is Donald's problem. He got himself into this mess. He can fix it himself.'"