Trump ‘staff writer’ behind Melania speech apologizes for plagiarism scandal
After two days of refusing to admit fault, Donald Trump’s campaign released a letter on Wednesday from a writer who said she offered her resignation for the firestorm caused by Melania Trump’s Republican National Convention speech.
The writer, Meredith McIver, said that she had inadvertently lifted passages from Michelle Obama’s speech while working with Melania Trump on a draft of the remarks.
“We discussed many people who inspired her and messages she wanted to share with the American people,” McIver wrote. “A person she has always liked is Michelle Obama. Over the phone, she read me some passages from Mrs. Obama’s speech as examples. … I did not check Mrs. Obama’s draft speeches.”
“This was my mistake, and I feel terrible for the chaos I have caused Melania and the Trumps, as well as to Mrs. Obama,” McIver wrote. “No harm was meant.”
According to McIver, she offered her resignation to the Trump family on Tuesday, but it was rejected.
“Mr. Trump told me that people make innocent mistakes and that we learn and grow from these experiences,” she wrote.
McIver identified herself as an “in-house staff writer at the Trump Organization,” and the letter released was on Trump’s corporate letterhead instead of his campaign’s. According to the New York Times, McIver is a “former ballet dancer and English major who has worked on some of Mr. Trump’s books, including ‘Think Like a Billionaire.’ ”
“I apologize for the confusion and hysteria my mistake has caused,” McIver wrote. “I personally admire the way Mr. Trump has handled this situation and I am grateful for his understanding.”
The apology followed two days of national controversy in which the Trump campaign and leading Republicans have struggled to explain the similarities between Melania Trump’s speech and Michelle Obama’s eight years ago.
In her headline speech Monday in Cleveland, Melania Trump spoke about the values that her parents had instilled in her.
“From a young age, my parents impressed on me the values that you work hard for what you want in life, that your word is your bond, and you do what you say and keep your promise, that you treat people with respect,” she said.
The address, which the would-be first lady delivered after a brief introduction by her husband, was well received by the GOP delegation. But viewers noticed strong similarities between Melania Trump’s speech and the one Michelle Obama delivered to the Democratic National Convention in 2008.
Trump campaign chief Paul Manafort initially dismissed questions surrounding the similarities as “absurd.”
“These were common words and values,” Manafort said on CNN. “To think that she would be cribbing Michelle Obama’s words is crazy. This is once again an example of when a woman threatens Hillary Clinton, she seeks out to demean her and take her down. It’s not going to work.”
Trump campaign spokesman Jason Miller did not initially address the plagiarism allegations either, instead appearing to blame those who helped her draft the speech.
“In writing her beautiful speech, Melania’s team of writers took notes on her life’s inspirations, and in some instances, included fragments that reflected her own thinking,” Miller said in a statement. “Melania’s immigrant experience and love for America shone through in her speech, which made it such a success.”
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(Cover tile photo: Carolyn Kaster/AP)
