First lady Melania Trump insisted she can still be an LGBTQ ally while supporting restrictions on transgender rights in an X post made the very last day of Pride Month.
Statement on Supreme Court Ruling
In one of the first lady’s rare political statements, she applauded Tuesday’s Supreme Court ruling allowing states to ban transgender girls and women from competing in female sports.
“America, we can support the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community and also protect opportunities for female athletes,” she wrote. “Respect everyone and keep girls’ sports fair. Both ideals are essential.”
Previous Comments and Advocacy
Trump voiced a similar opinion in her 2024 memoir, where she claimed she “fully supports the LGBTQIA+ community” but said that debates about transgender athletes were “deepening the divisions in our society.”
Though the first lady has repeatedly vowed she’s an LGBTQ ally, concrete examples of her advocacy are hard to find.
Financial Ties to Log Cabin Republicans
She has been active in her husband’s efforts to woo LGBTQ supporters, maintaining a long-standing relationship with the Log Cabin Republicans, an organization representing LGBTQ conservatives.
That partnership might be less about values and more about dollars and cents, however: 2024 financial disclosures revealed that the Log Cabin Republicans paid Melania Trump $237,500 to speak at a fundraiser the organization hosted at President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.
