Melania Trump plagiarized Michelle Obama?
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Politics –
Melania Trump Plagiarized
Michelle Obama
The Republican Party officially coronated Donald J. Trump as its presidential nominee on Tuesday. One might think that once unthinkable act was the highlight of the day. Well, think again!
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Unless you’ve been living on the dark side of the moon, you’re aware the big news of the day was the speech Melania Trump delivered on Monday night. Mrs. Trump boasted that she wrote her own speech, however a few sharp political minds were quick to point out she actually borrowed a huge chunk of her words from First Lady Michelle Obama.
For example, here’s what Mrs. Trump said:
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. They taught and showed me values and morals in their daily lives. That is a lesson that I continue to pass along to our son. And we need to pass those lessons on to the many generations to follow. Because we want our children in this nation to know that the only limit to your achievements is the strength of your dreams and your willingness to work for them.
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However, here’s what Mrs. Obama said in her 2008 speech:
“Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values: that you work hard for what you want in life; that your word is your bond and you do what you say you’re going to do; that you treat people with dignity and respect, even if you don’t know them, and even if you don’t agree with them. And Barack and I set out to build lives guided by these values, and pass them on to the next generation. Because we want our children — and all children in this nation — to know that the only limit to the height of your achievements is the reach of your dreams and your willingness to work for them.”
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Mrs. Trump:
“I was born in Slovenia, a small, beautiful and then-Communist country in Central Europe. My sister, Ines, who is an incredible woman and a friend, and I were raised by my wonderful parents. My elegant and hard-working mother, Amalija, introduced me to fashion and beauty. My father, Viktor, instilled in me a passion for business and travel. Their integrity, compassion and intelligence reflects to this day on me and for my love of family and America.”
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Mrs. Obama, in 2008:
“And I come here as a daughter — raised on the South Side of Chicago by a father who was a blue-collar city worker and a mother who stayed at home with my brother and me. My mother’s love has always been a sustaining force for our family, and one of my greatest joys is seeing her integrity, her compassion and her intelligence reflected in my own daughters.”
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Borrowed words? Plagiarism? Most of America said YES! However, Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort said NO!
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(EDITORIAL NOTE: This might be a good time to take a Dramamine. The GOP spin is about to become dizzying.)
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Politics
Manafort appeared on Tuesday’s morning shows and actually said with a straight face that our ears were lying and insisted Mrs. Trump’s words were not at all similar to Mrs. Obama’s. He then doubled-down and attempted to shift blame to the Clinton campaign.
“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 against Melania Trump.”
HUH???
Instead of admitting someone made a mistake, Manafort exacerbated and prolonged the story by pretending it wasn’t really there. He also refused to fire the anonymous aide who helped write the speech, while former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski told CNN he believes Manafort should be fired.
“Whoever signed off, the final signoff that allowed this [speech] to go forward, should be held accountable,” Lewandowski said. “I think if it was Paul Manafort, he would do the right thing and resign.”
If that wasn’t enough, RNC chief strategist Sean Spicer kicked the spin game into high gear, by trying to convince us that Mrs. Trump’s speech merely used common phrases. He even went so far as to reference the children’s character “My Little Pony.”
“Melania Trump said, ‘the strength of your dreams and willingness to work for them.’ Twilight Sparkle from ‘My Little Pony’ said, ‘This is your dream. Anything you can do in your dreams, you can do now,’ ” Spicer said.
“I mean if we want to take a bunch of phrases and run them through a Google and say, ‘Hey, who else has said them,’ I can do that in five minutes,” Spicer added. “And that’s what this is.”
Needless to say, “Melania-gate” was truly the most entertaining moment of the day. With hoards of GOP delegates flocking out of the convention very early in the evening, it was also likely the ONLY entertaining moment of the day!
WELCOME TO THE PARTY OF TRUMP!
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UPDATE (as per The Right Scoop): "Turns out Melania’s speechwriter DID NOT add the plagiarized part" According to MSNBC reporter Hallie Jackson, the speechwriter hired by the Trump campaign to write Melania Trump’s speech did not write in the plagiarized portion to her speech in his final draft: ABC News: Six weeks ago, two of the most respected speechwriters in Republican politics were asked to write a convention address for Melania Trump ahead of her big moment in the spotlight in Cleveland. The speech she gave Monday night — which included passages bearing striking resemblance to Michelle Obama’s 2008 convention address and raised questions of plagiarism — was not it. An early version of the speech crafted by GOP speechwriters Matthew Scully and John McConnell was apparently disregarded and shelved by the Trump campaign. Six weeks ago, they were approached by Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law and campaign adviser, to… Read more »