
President Donald Trump claimed his wife Melania was referring to 'the Fake News Media' when she wore an extraordinary jacket with the slogan 'I really don't care, do u' as she flew Thursday to visit children separated from their families at the Mexico border.

Trump used Twitter after his wife was pilloried for the $39 statement jacket from Zara which she wore on her way to McAllen, Texas, where she said 'good luck' to children taken from their parents - and when she landed back in Washington D.C. despite the outcry.

He contradicted his wife's spokeswoman's claim that it was 'just a jacket' to launch the attack on the media as his own administration battles the crisis prompted by the decision to arrest every illegal border crosser.

Although he signed an executive order on Wednesday to stop children being separated from arrested parents, the crisis showed no sign of diminishing, with questions over when the separated children will be reunited with their families and the Pentagon preparing to house as many as 20,000 under-18s on military bases.

The first lady's surprise visit to a children's shelter - where a handful of the 55 children it houses had been taken from their parents - was intended to underline her compassion for children, and came after she lobbied Trump to end separations.

Instead it was overshadowed by the former model's choice of jacket - which she wore as she walked to the Oval Office to see her husband on Thursday evening.

About the same time, Trump tweeted: ''I REALLY DON'T CARE, DO YOU?' written on the back of Melania's jacket, refers to the Fake News Media. Melania has learned how dishonest they are, and she truly no longer cares.'

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Controversy: Melania Trump wore a $39 jacket with the phrase, 'I REALLY DON'T CARE, DO U?' scrawled across the back when leaving for and returning from (pictured) her trip to visit immigrant children in Texas

Spotted: The Zara design was first spotted when Melania arrived at Andrews Air Force Base on Thursday morning. DailyMail.com identified the jacket - and the slogan on it - soon after

Defense: President Trump tweeted in response to the outcry on Thursday evening, stating that the message on his wife's jacket 'refers to the Fake News Media'

In the White House: The slogan was there for all to see as Melania made her way to the Oval Office - at almost the same time as her husband tweeted that it was a message for the 'Fake News Media', not immigrant children she had visited at the border

Shocking: The green Zara design featured the controversial phrase across the back - with the wording visible from the side as Melania boarded her plane at Andrews Air Force Base

Plain as day: Closer-up images of the jacket taken as Melania was walking up the steps to her aircraft clearly show the controversial question written across the back of it

Change: Melania, 48, had removed the jacket by the time she landed in Texas, and was seen disembarking her plane in a cream military-style number instead

Shocking: Cameras caught the message on the back of the jacket clearly when Melania arrived back at Andrews Air Force Base on Thursday evening, apparently unperturbed by the upset the item had cause

A Republican close to the White House told CNN, communications staff attended an urgent meeting after she wore the jacket, and this is when the explanation that the item of clothing was aimed at the 'fake news media' was devised.

After defending the jacket, the president continued to write on Twitter: 'We have to maintain strong borders or we will no longer have a country that we can be proud of – and if we show any weakness, millions of people will journey into our country.'

'You cannot pass legislation on immigration whether it be for safety and security or any other reason including “heart,” without getting Dem votes,' he added. 'Problem is, they don’t care about security and R’s do. Zero Dems voted to support the Goodlatte Bill. They won’t vote for anything!'

Melania first wore the jacket in the morning as she boarded an Air Force VIP jet for McAllen.

She removed the offending jacket, which bore the controversial phrase in white graffiti-style writing across the entire back section, before disembarking the plane upon her arrival.

But shockingly she chose to put the outerwear back on for her return trip to D.C., despite the furious public outcry it prompted, and the balmy 80 degree weather.

Melania - who works with a stylist, Hervé Pierre - had taken it off in flight to Texas. For the visit she wore a cream button-up safari-style jacket, along with the same white jeans and Stan Smith sneakers she had worn earlier in the day.

The sartorial switch-up prompted some to suggest that her attention had been drawn to the jacket's insensitive connotations.

But instead she - and then her husband - doubled down.

After DailyMail.com identified the exact jacket that Melania chose for her trip, people quickly took to Twitter to slam her for the 'tone deaf' fashion choice, while others bitterly claimed that she was being the only 'honest' Trump by wearing such a clear sentiment so publicly.

Others chose to offer up other alternatives for jacket messages that Melania might have opted for, with phrases including, 'What are you waiting for? Impeach this moron!' and 'Don't let them eat cake, give it to me,' being suggested on social media.

When asked about Melania's controversial choice of outerwear, her spokesperson Stephanie Grisham did not deny that the first lady was wearing the exact style identified by DailyMail.com, however she insisted there was 'no hidden meaning behind the jacket'.

Ready to go: Melania was seen wearing the jacket when she exited her Secret Service SUV at the Air Force base in Maryland, pairing it with white jeans and Adidas Stan Smith sneakers

Warm welcome: The mother-of-one was greeted by several military personnel upon her arrival, and readily shook hands with them before getting on the plane

There it is: The message on the jacket could be seen clearly as the first lady boarded the plane

Wet arrival: The first lady arrived at McAllen airport on a government jet in heavy rain for her visit to a children's shelter and a border processing center

Partial change: Although she swapped jackets upon her arrival, she left her white jeans and Adidas sneakers on

Different look: Melania wore her cream military-inspired coat was buttoned up

'It's a jacket. There was no hidden message. After today's important visit to Texas, I hope the media isn't going to choose to focus on her wardrobe,' she said, before adding: 'Much like her high heels last year,' referring to another incident in August 2017, when Melania was publicly mocked for wearing a pair of sky-high heels while leaving the White House on a trip to visit the areas that were destroyed by Hurricane Harvey.

'It's just a jacket': Melania's spokesperson, Stephanie Grisham, took to Twitter to insist that the first lady does indeed care, despite the jacket's message

At the time, Melania was pictured stepping out of her home with her husband, looking more prepared for a Top Gun-themed fashion shoot than a trip to the site of a natural disaster, wearing a green bomber jacket, black cropped trousers - and a pair of black heeled pumps.

And much like she did during her journey to McAllen, Texas, which saw her remove the controversial Zara jacket before getting off the plane, Melania also made a mid-flight fashion swap on this occasion, trading the high heels for a more suitable pair of white Adidas sneakers.

In a post shared on her Twitter account, Grisham tried to further reiterate the sentiment in her official statement, writing: 'Today's visit [with] the children in Texas impacted @flotus greatly.

'If media would spend their time & energy on her actions & efforts to help kids - rather than speculate & focus on her wardrobe - we could get so much accomplished on behalf of children.'

To hammer her point home, she then added the hashtags, #SheCares #ItsJustAJacket.

Whatever the reason behind her style choice, the sentiment stated on the jacket - which Melania paired with white jeans and a pair of Adidas sneakers - is certainly at odds with her reported motivation for the trip.

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Speaking ahead of Melania's departure to Texas, her spokesperson revealed that the entire trip was the the first lady's idea, adding that Melania wanted see the facilities for herself and to thank the staff working in them.

'Her goals are to thank law enforcement and social services providers for their hard work, lend support and hear more on how the administration can build upon the already existing efforts to reunite children with their families,' Grisham said.

'I'm looking forward to meeting the children,' Melania herself said during her visit to the Upbring New Hope Children's Shelter, a facility that is sheltering 55 children.

The first lady also went as far as to issue a rare public statement on the issue of family separation over the weekend, inserting herself into a policy issue that she had previously been silent on.

Her spokeswoman told DailyMail.com, CNN and other outlets that 'Mrs Trump hates to see children separated from their families and hopes both sides of the aisle can finally come together to achieve successful immigration reform'.

Past controversy: Melania's spokesperson compared the reaction to the jacket to the mocking public response when she wore a pair of black high heels to visit the victims of Hurricane Harvey (left). On this occasions, she also changed her look mid-flight and put on a pair of sneakers (right)

Grisham added: 'She believes we need to be a country that follows all laws, but also a country that governs with heart.'

During her visit to Texas, Grisham insisted that Melania will continue to be a vocal presence on the issue as administration officials try to work out ways to reunited children and their families after President Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday.

'While we're going through that process she's going to lend her support and promote family reunification and I'm sure she'll continue to give her husband opinions on what she's thinking along the way,' Grisham said of the visit.

She also emphasized how much the first lady wants to see children reunited with their families.

'She'll do everything she can and she'll speak her opinions as much as she can.'

Melania's surprise trip to see the young children being held at the border by her husband's administration - came at exactly the same time as he claimed there was a 'massive child smuggling industry' at the border.

In Washington D.C. the president spoke at length before a cabinet meeting, claiming that there was a 'massive child smuggling industry'.

On the border: Melania visited the Upbring New Hope Children Center, run by the Lutheran Social Services of the South, in McAllen, Texas

Side by side: The first lady traveled with Alex Azar, Secretary of Health and Human Services, for the trip, which was also included a visit to a border processing center

Explanation: Officials from the Upbring New Hope Children's Center spoke to the first lady before she toured the facility to meet children

'People are suffering because of the Democrats. They created, and they have let it happen, a massive child smuggling industry,' he said. 'The human traffickers are making a fortune. It's a disgrace.'

His comments come after he had to execute a U-turn on child separations, which had exploded because of a new zero-tolerance policy. Border Patrol was ordered to arrest and prosecute every person caught crossing illegally.

The Texas briefing was a rare opportunity to hear the first lady speak; she is mostly seen and not heard when at public appearances with her husband, and did not ask any questions when she joined her husband two weeks ago at a hurricane preparedness briefing at FEMA.

But the solo trip gave her a chance to address officials in Texas, and she was hear telling officials, 'Thank you for all you do,' as she started the meeting.

She spoke softly and in a slightly accented voice, before asking her first question: 'How often do the children get to call and talk to their families?'



She asked officials what kind of shape the children are in when they arrive. 'I've heard they are very happy. They love to study. They love school,' the first lady said.

Melania also wanted to know how long the children stayed at the center and if they were without the parents.

Officials told her the majority of the children had arrived unaccompanied - meaning it is unclear how many were victims of family separation.

Sober trip: Melania said she was in Texas to thank social workers and law enforcement for their work 'in these hard times'

Husband's blessing: Donald Trump, who held a cabinet meeting in the White House while his wife toured the facility, supported her visit, the first lady's spokeswoman said

Melania's visit came after President Trump credited her and his daughter Ivanka for helping change his mind about separating children from their families.

Trump, when he signed his executive order on the issue on Wednesday, indicated that lobbying from Ivanka, who showed him pictures of the caged and kenneled children, and his wife Melania had caused him to have a change in heart.

'Ivanka feels very strongly about it. My wife feels very strongly about it. I feel very strongly about it. I think anybody with a heart would feel very strongly about it,' he said.

The first lady also saw the photos from the border and heard the recordings of children being separated from their families.

'She's seen the images. She's heard the recordings,' Grisham said. 'She was on top of the situation before any of that came out. She was concerned about it.'

Grisham said Melania saw the images of kids behind chain link fence at an intake facility.

'The images struck her, as a mother, as a human being.'

Melania is then said to have asked her staff on Tuesday to plan a trip as soon as possible – before President Trump signed the executive. Grisham said she wasn't sure if Melania knew that the order was coming.

Mobile: The first lady's rare solo trip outside Washington D.C. to a children's center where she looked at artworks made by detained children came after her husband entered a political firestorm over illegal immigrant families being separated

Public expression: Melania's involvement in the border separation crisis marks a new phase in her public profile

'I don't know what she knew. She knew what she wanted to do and she told us,' Grisham said.

'She wanted to see everything for herself…. She supports family reunification. She thinks that it's important that children stay with their families.'

'This was 100 per cent her idea. She absolutely wanted to come.'

And it was her idea to visit before her husband signed his executive order, Grisham said, and she had no second thoughts after the order was signed.

'She wants to see what's happening for herself and she wants to lend her support, executive order or not. The executive order certainly is helping pave the way a little bit, but there's still a lot to be done.'

President Trump supported this trip, but he didn't send her.

'This was her decision. She told her staff she wanted to go and we made that happen. He is supportive of it but she told him, 'I'm headed down to Texas,' and he supported it.'

'She wants to see these children and she wants to help children. It's not about anything more than that…. She wants to see what's real. She wants to see a realistic view.'

Melania is an immigrant herself. She was born in Yugoslavia, what is now Slovenia, and came to New York City in 1996. She became a permanent resident of the U.S. in 2001 and became a citizen in 2006.

She is the first naturalized U.S. citizen to become First Lady of the United States.

Asked if her immigration background influenced Melania's views, Grisham said she didn't know.

'I don't know that it plays into her thinking, but I can tell you guys that when she came into this country, she did it legally and she feels that everybody should enter the country legally,' she said.