In that lawyer letter released by the Trump campaign lawyer Michael Wildes says Melania Trump could not have participated in a photo shoot in 1995 because her first legal entry into the country was in August 1996. When the lawyer interviewed Melania she remembered that the photo shoot happened after October 1996. So all good.

But wait! The New York Post article which first reported the risque photo op reports that the photos appeared in the January 1996 issue of Max magazine. Did the Post get this pretty critical detail wrong?

[Late Update: Well, maybe so? I’ve now heard that the magazine issue was actually January 1997. Which would mean the Post screwed up and the Trump timeline could be right! Indeed, we’ve confirmed that the Jan 96 did not have Cindy Crawford on the cover, as the Post claimed.]

From the Post

Her sexy photo spread appeared in the January 1996 issue of Max Magazine, whose cover featured a photo of supermodel Cindy Crawford.

I don’t see the NY Post as a great fact witness. But the date on the front of the magazine seems like a pretty basic one. Did the Post get this wrong? Or did Melania sit for the photo shoot a year after they appeared in print?

Late Update: I’ve now heard that the magazine may actually have been January 1997. Thus the Post story would have been wrong and the Trump timeline could be correct. Waiting for confirmation on this point.

Later Update: We now believe we’ve confirmed that the January 1996 issue of Max (actually Dec 95/Jan 96) did not have Cindy Crawford on the cover, as the Post claimed. That certainly puts a major dent in the Post’s credibility on this issue. We’re now trying to track down the Dec 96/Jan 97 issue.