Melania Trump called Ivanka and Jared ‘the interns’ because they were ‘obnoxious know it alls,’ claims Grisham book

‘We had all come to call Jared and Ivanka “the interns” because they represented in our minds obnoxious, entitled know-it-alls,’ writes former Trump press secretary Stephanie Grisham

According to a new book, Melania Trump had a withering nickname for Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump: “the interns.”

Stephanie Grisham, who briefly served as Donald Trump’s White House press secretary, revealed the unflattering moniker in her upcoming memoir, I’ll Take Your Questions Now: My Time in the Trump White House.

According to Ms Grisham, the nickname wasn’t due to the couple’s youthful vitality.

“When I worked for the first lady in the East Wing, we had all come to call Jared and Ivanka ‘the interns’ because they represented in our minds obnoxious, entitled know-it-alls,” Ms Grisham writes in a passage released by Politico. “Mrs Trump found that nickname amusing and occasionally used it herself.”

Ms Grisham also details how, in her view, Ivanka and Jared hijacked the White House’s early response to Covid-19. In one heated White House discussion as the pandemic was just beginning, the former aide recalls the president’s daughter repeatedly insisting, “There should be an address from the Oval.”

Finally, Ms Grisham asked Ivanka what exactly the president would say.

“She just looked at me, seemingly confused,” Ms Grisham writes.

Later, Ms Grisham recalls a Cabinet Room meeting that Mr Kushner dominated – even as he sat next to then-vice president Mike Pence.

“What struck me in that meeting was that Jared, who was sitting next to the vice president of the United States, commandeered the meeting and was calling all the shots,” Ms Grisham writes. “As many times as I had seen him behave that way with members of senior staff, that particular time made me uneasy because it was with the vice president. It was disrespectful, and I remember feeling both embarrassed and disgusted.”

The former press secretary, who also worked for a period as Melania Trump’s chief of staff, says the first lady sometimes agreed with her harsh assessment of “the interns”.

“I had shared with Mrs. Trump many times my opinion that if we lost reelection in 2020 it would be because of Jared,” Ms Grisham writes. “She didn’t disagree with me.”

Melania and Donald Trump have both vehemently denied Ms Grisham’s account of her time in the White House.

“The intent behind this book is obvious,” the former first lady’s office said in a statement. “It is an attempt to redeem herself after a poor performance as press secretary, failed personal relationships, and unprofessional behavior in the White House. Through mistruth and betrayal, she seeks to gain relevance and money at the expense of Mrs Trump.”

The former president went even further.

“Stephanie didn’t have what it takes and that was obvious from the beginning,” Mr Trump said in a statement tweeted out by his spokeswoman, Liz Harrington. “Now, like everyone else, she gets paid by a radical left-leaning publisher to say bad and untrue things. Too bad that sleaze bag publishers continue to report this very boring garbage.”