White House press secretary Sarah Sanders ripped the Washington Post on Monday for publishing "tabloid gossip" about first lady Melania Trump, describing claims that she deliberately spends time apart from the president as erroneous.

"Just when you think the Washington Post can't get things any more wrong, they do," Sanders told reporters at the daily briefing.

"The first lady lives here at the White House. We see her regularly. And I think that is something that belongs in tabloid gossip, not on the front pages of the Washington Post. I hope they'll do better next time," she said.

In a story published late Sunday evening, anonymous sources told the Post the first lady sleeps in a separate bedroom from President Trump and has made an effort to avoid spending time with her husband amid the negative headlines surrounding his alleged affair with porn star Stormy Daniels.

"The Trumps are often apart even during their free time, according to several people who know the couple's schedules," the report claimed, describing the first lady as "nowhere to be seen" during weekend trips to Mar-a-Lago.

The first lady's spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham told the newspaper the controversy surrounding the president and Daniels was "just noise." Trump, his wife, and their 11-year-old son Barron spend most evenings together, Grisham said.

Sanders called the story "outrageous and ridiculous" just minutes before the first lady was set to hold a rare news conference at the White House to unveil her official platform on Monday.