Mnuchin’s wife touts style, slams critic, apologizes

It was a glam shot that got ugly.

The wife of Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin dove headlong into a social media skirmish this week, blasting a critic of her Instagram post highlighting her high fashion choices. Calling the commenter “adorably out of touch,” Louise Linton suggested she and Mnuchin contributed more to the economy and paid more in taxes than did her critic.

After a day of mounting criticism, the Scottish actress issued an apology Tuesday. But she had already assumed a starring role in the continuing story of the Trump administration’s enormous wealth.

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“I think spouses of political appointees are usually not fair game for critics, but with Trump, tensions are heightened,” said Republican political consultant Alex Conant.

The drama began Monday when Linton posted a photo of herself getting off a government plane in Kentucky with Mnuchin. In her post, Linton mentioned several designer labels for her white ensemble, including Tom Ford and Valentino.

Commenter Jenni Miller responded from Oregon: “Glad we could pay for your little getaway. #deplorable.”

Linton shot back, defending herself and Mnuchin, a former Goldman Sachs executive and hedge fund investor.

“Pretty sure the amount we sacrifice per year is a lot more than you’d be willing to sacrifice if the choice was yours,” Linton wrote. She went on to call Miller’s response “passive aggressive” and “nasty” before ending her retort with a suggestion that Miller “go chill out and watch the new game of thrones.”

Miller told CNN she found Linton’s original post “incredibly offensive,” saying Linton went to a state with high poverty and “chose to brag about her outlandishly expensive clothes. It’s more than tone-deaf, it’s deplorable.”

In her apology, Linton said: “I apologize for my post on social media yesterday as well as my response. It was inappropriate and highly insensitive.”

The White House referred questions about Linton to the Treasury Department, which said Mnuchin and Linton are reimbursing the government for Linton’s travel and that Linton received no compensation from the fashion labels mentioned in her post.

In a Cabinet with plenty of wealth, Mnuchin is among the richest members. He worked for Goldman Sachs for nearly two decades and later founding a successful hedge fund. He married Linton, who has had small roles in television shows and movies, in a lavish Washington wedding in June. Trump attended the wedding and Vice President Mike Pence officiated.

Before the wedding, Linton gave an interview to Town and Country magazine to talk about her jewelry, a lavish collection of diamonds and pearls.

Mnuchin was visiting Kentucky on Monday for an appearance with Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and a tour of Fort Knox. Treasury secretaries typically travel on commercial flights for domestic trips. The department did not answer questions about why the couple were using a government plane.

Catherine Lucey is an Associated Press writer.