Simmering anger over an unfounded 2016 accusation about Barron Trump from former talk show host Rosie O’Donnell boils over in former first lady Melania Trump’s new memoir.
Nothing but “sheer malice” could have motivated a tweet and video in which O’Donnell suggested Barron Trump could have autism, she wrote, according to the U.K.’s Daily Mail.
“There is nothing shameful about autism (though O’Donnell’s tweet implied that there was), but Barron is not autistic,” Trump wrote, according to USA Today.
“Bullying a ten-year-old boy is egregious, but doing so under the flimsy pretense of ‘bringing awareness’ … is truly repulsive,” she wrote.
Melania Joins Trump’s Feud With Rosie O’Donnell for Saying What Everyone’s Been Saying for a While Now https://t.co/Itjy4KHGrd
— #TuckFrump (@realTuckFrumper) October 8, 2024
In her memoir, “Melania,” she revealed that Barron was bullied over O’Donnell’s since-deleted tweet, which read, “Barron Trump autistic? If so, what an amazing opportunity to bring attention to the AUTISM epidemic,” according to Fox News.
O’Donnell also posted a video with commentary suggesting Barron had autism spectrum disorder.
“Barron’s experience of being bullied both online and in real life following the incident is a clear indication of the irreparable damage caused,” Trump wrote.
Will you read Melania Trump’s new book?
“I was appalled by such cruelty.”
“It was clear to me that she was not interested in raising awareness about autism. I felt that she was attacking my son because she didn’t like my husband,” she continued.
She said that viewing her son as collateral damage was “devastating.”
“It felt like my heart was breaking into pieces,” she wrote.
Melania Trump speaks out about how autism rumors affected her son: ‘Irreparable damage’. Proof positive Rosie O’Donnell is not only a disgusting person but a loud mouthed Moron! https://t.co/m8T6aI3Xym
— john f klinginsmith (@klingchiro) October 8, 2024
“I knew the tweet and video would go viral and I knew how much it would hurt him,” she wrote, according to the BBC, adding that she was “furious” at O’Donnell.
The incident helped lead to the founding of her “Be Best” initiative.
So did a 2018 meeting with tech leaders.
She wrote that she was “taken aback by the resistance I encountered from tech executives” from Google, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon and Snapchat when she met with them to seek action to protect children online, according to The New York Times.
Although O’Donnell voiced an apology, Melania Trump said it meant nothing.
“No apology can undo the harm inflicted upon him,” she wrote.
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