Donald Trump, 77, revealed that his wife, Melania Trump‘s mother, Amalija, is “very ill” in a hospital, during a New Year’s Eve celebration at Mar-a-Lago. The former president addressed the news when he gave a shout-out to the former first lady, who was noticeably absent from the festivities, during a speech at the event, in a new video posted on X.
“Melania—great First Lady, so popular, the people love her—she’s now in a hospital with her mother. Her mother, Amalija, is very ill, but hopefully she’ll be recovering,” Donald said while wearing a tuxedo, in the speech.
President Trump at Mar-a-Lago on New Year's Eve 2023!
— Shannon Ford (@shannonfordUSA) January 1, 2024
“But she’s been very ill, so I just want to say ‘hello’ to the First Lady—we just spoke, down in Miami, great hospital—and hopefully they’ll be ok, but it’s a tough one, it’s a very tough one,” he continued. “She knows probably about 95% of the people in this room. We just want to wish Amalija that she gets better as quickly as possible.”
Donald’s latest comments about Melania and her mother come after Melania was missing from a family Christmas photo shared on social media last week. When asked about her absence, a Trump spokesperson said it was because she was tending to a family matter. Although they didn’t go into specifics, Donald’s latest speech means it was most likely related to her mother’s illness.
Despite Melania’s absence, the Trump Christmas photo got a lot of attention. It included Donald posing with his large family, including his sons Donald Trump Jr. and Barron Trump, Donald Jr.’s fiancee, Kimberly Guilfoyle, his daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner and their kids, and his daughter Tiffany Trump and her husband Michael Boulos. Donald’s other son Eric Trump, and his wife, Lara Trump, were not featured in the photo but did attend the family event.
Barron’s rare appearance in the holiday photo made headlines as the growing 17-year-old towered over the other family members while wearing a suit with a yellow tie.
