Politics - News Analysis

Looks Like a New Scandal Involving Melania Swindling Her Husband’s Supporters is About to Blow Up

With Donald Trump running for president for a third time, more and more people are focusing on his Save America Political Action Committee. Their biggest concern?

How the committee’s funds are being spent. Folks have already noticed one pricey line item that doesn’t really have to do with Trump. This time it involves former first lady, Melania Trump.

According to SheKnows, the PAC’s 2022 financial filing showed eight payments ranging from $6,000 to $18,000 to hairstylist Hervé Pierre Braillard for “strategy consulting.” All that “consulting” totaled $132,000, Fox News Digital reported.

FEC filings showing a series of payments from the Save America PAC to Herve Pierre Braillard. (Federal Elections Commission).

Friends, that’s one heck of a lot of money for shampoo. And it looks to be a violation of Federal Election Commission regulations. The FEC “does not allow candidate committees, which are formed to raise money for a specific candidate, to spend money on personal items, including clothing,” USAToday reports. And no matter how special Donald and Melania Trump think they are, they aren’t exempt from these rules. And frankly, that so-called “strategy consulting” sounds like the couple is trying to avoid paying Pierre out of their pockets. A bit grifty, don’t you think?

This isn’t the first time Pierre has been in hot water for receiving huge sums of money from Trump’s PAC. In August, he defended his work for Melania (which came with a hefty $60,000 payment) to WWD. “As with every other first lady, there is an after-the-White House life, which involves many other aspects than fashion. I am lucky to have worked in prestigious houses, to have designed [costumed] for ballets, and more recently to work in home decor. There are many upcoming projects in this after-the-White House [stage].”

Former first lady Melania Trump and Hervé Pierre Braillard stand alongside the gown she wore to the 2017 inaugural balls. SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

There is, of course, the expectation that first ladies keep up appearances during their time in the White House and after they leave, but as She Knows reports “it shouldn’t come from an election fund where Pierre is obviously billing top dollar. Pierre and the Trumps had no comment for Fox News Digital, but the paper is telling a very damning story.”

Sure looks that way, now doesn’t it? But what will happen this time? Seems to me like Donald Trump has skated right through a lot of things with little or no trouble at all.

meet the author

Nicole Hickman James is a lifelong Democrat and political activist who first cut her teeth as a teenager volunteering for Mike Dukakis’ presidential campaign. She has worked and volunteered for John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, HFA (Hillary For America), and Organizing For Action. She’s passionate about liberal and progressive causes and considers President Obama her favorite president ever. She holds her Bachelor’s from Boston College in Economics and her Master's from Columbia, also in Economics. When not working as a writer, she enjoys traveling and spending time with her three college-aged children.

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