Donald Trump wanted to recreate his escalator entrance for the 2020 election, but Melania talked him out of it
Christopher Gregory/Getty Images
- Trump wanted to recreate his famous escalator entrance from the 2016 election for the 2020 race.
- But Melania Trump talked him out of it, The Washington Post reported.
- "No, you've already done that," Melania said.
Former President Donald Trump wanted to recreate his famous 2015 escalator descent when announcing his 2020 reelection bid.
But his wife, Melania, helped talk him out of it.
That's according to The Washington Post, which published a lengthy story about the former first lady's whereabouts.
A former member of Melania Trump's staff told the paper that Trump "would call her from the Oval all the time and ask questions."
When Trump was mulling over how to announce his reelection bid, he called his wife and said, "Should I come down the escalator again?"
"No, you've already done that," Melania Trump responded, according to The Post.
Melania Trump was referring to an event in New York City on June 16, 2015, where the business mogul and reality television star descended down the golden escalators at his namesake building, Trump Tower, just before declaring the launch of his 2016 presidential campaign.
"Sadly the American dream is dead," Trump said at the time, "But if I get elected president I will bring it back, bigger, and better, and stronger than ever before."
The report from the Washington Post also suggested Melania privately told her husband to quit mocking transgender athletes and dancing at campaign events, which she reportedly said was "not presidential."
It also included quotes from an interview with the former first lady's chief of staff, Stephanie Grisham, who said it wasn't easy to get her boss to commit to attending just one event a week.
She added that she and the rest of Melania's advisors thought it was a "mystery" about how she actually spent her time in the White House.
Representatives from Melania and the former president's teams didn't respond to Insider's requests for comment.