Melania Trump Makes a Holiday Visit at Children’s National Hospital
Plus, the first lady makes a stop at The Blair House reception and lights the National Christmas Tree.

First Lady Melania Trump continued the holiday tradition of visiting Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C., Friday where she was surrounded by children while reading How Does Santa Go Down the Chimney?
During the event, the first lady made brief remarks.
“I’m sure Santa will visit all of you this Christmas and bring you a lot of toys,” she said. “So, I wish you a lot of strength and love. My husband, [the] president, is sending love and best wishes, as well.”
Mrs. Trump spent time visiting with each of the children during the event.
Earlier in the day, the first lady made an appearance at Blair House for a holiday reception hosted by the Blair House Foundation and the Friends of Blair House. The site, known as the President’s Guest House, fills a central and historic role in welcoming foreign leaders as they prepare for engagements at the White House. Mrs. Trump emphasized its significance as a place where relationships begin, trust is built, and diplomatic partnerships take shape.
“For generations, this residence has been the quiet, dignified bridge between the White House and the world,” the first lady said.
The Blair House, originally constructed in 1824, was purchased by the United States government in 1942 during World War II at the urging of then President Franklin D. Roosevelt when there was a greater need for diplomacy.
“As America’s 250th anniversary approaches, we must consider the important role our nation’s institutions have played in shaping our core values. The Blair House, in particular, has been a beacon of dignity, cultural awareness, and attention to detail. America’s institutions, including the Blair House, honor legacy while transcending generations,” said Mrs. Trump.

Melania Trump Lights the National Christmas Tree
First Lady Melania Trump alongside President Trump lit the National Christmas Tree Thursday during a ceremony on the Ellipse in Washington, D.C.
The president counted down from five and then Mrs. Trump pressed a button illuminating the tree in gold and soft white lights. The event included brief remarks from President Trump that included a tribute to the two West Virginia National Guard service members who were shot last month blocks from the White House in Washington, D.C. United States Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died from her wounds and U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe was critically injured.
The event also included live performances from various entertainers including The Beach Boys. The National Christmas Tree Lighting event can be viewed Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Great American Pure Flix.
The Weekly Wrap
The Weekly Wrap is a collection of headlines from the past week. Some publications have paywalls.
USA Today
White House Set To Soon Submit Plans For Trump’s Ballroom to Review Panel
Dec. 4, 2025 — The White House is set to submit design plans for President Donald Trump’s controversial White House ballroom to the National Capital Planning Commission later in December. Will Scharf, the commission’s chairman, relayed the timeline to the panel during a Dec. 4 meeting, saying the designs will then go through the commission’s review process at a “normal and deliberative pace.” Read more

The New York Times
Trump Switches Architects for White House Ballroom Project
Dec. 4, 2025 — President Trump has hired a new architecture firm to oversee the design of his new ballroom, the White House said on Thursday, a move that comes after he had multiple disagreements with his original designer. Read more

East Wing Magazine
Melania Trump Helps Seven More Ukrainian Children Reunite With Their Families
Dec. 4, 2025 — While talks continue in an effort to end the yearslong war between Ukraine and Russia, First Lady Melania Trump has orchestrated the reunification of seven more Ukrainian children with their families, her office announced on Thursday. Read more
Today
Laura Bush Asked Jenna to Change Spelling Of Her Daughter’s Name
Dec. 4, 2025 — When Jenna Bush Hager welcomed her first child in 2013, she chose a name she loved for her newborn daughter: Mila. The excitement of the moment had barely settled in when the phone rang. On the other end was Jenna’s mother, former First Lady Laura Bush. On the Dec. 4 taping of Jenna & Friends, Jenna recalled to guest host Scarlett Johansson how her mom explained that folks in Texas were already stumbling over the pronunciation, stretching the simple Mila into a drawn-out “My-la.” Read more
IMO With Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson
Dec. 3, 2025 — Comedian Katt Williams joins the podcast for a hilariously unpredictable conversation about his complicated childhood, and how his early years set him up for a career in comedy. View here
Newsweek
Melania Trump’s Immigration Lawyer Responds to New Citizenship Bill
Dec. 3, 2025 — A new proposal to eliminate dual citizenship for Americans—legislation that could directly affect First Lady Melania Trump and her son, Barron—has drawn criticism from a prominent immigration attorney who previously represented the first lady. Read more

East Wing Magazine
Melania Trump Unveils Christmas at the White House
Dec. 2, 2025 — First Lady Melania Trump on Tuesday reopened the White House for public tours, a day after she unveiled its 2025 Christmas theme “Home Is Where the Heart Is.” Read more
The Hill
Trump Says Melania Isn’t Happy With White House Ballroom Construction Noise
Dec. 2, 2025 — President Trump said Tuesday that First Lady Melania Trump isn’t happy about the ballroom construction process on the White House grounds where the East Wing once stood. “I wouldn’t say my wife is thrilled. She hears pile drivers in the background, all day, all night,” the president told reporters. Read more

East Wing Magazine
Holly Shulman Named 2025 Gould Award Winner
Dec. 1, 2025 — In the early days of the internet in the 1990s, there was a buzz in the air and questions among innovators across all fields about what the new technology could do and how it might be used. Swept up in the excitement was historian Holly Shulman, who had published a Ph.D. dissertation, articles and the 1990 book The Voice of America: Propaganda and Democracy 1941-1945 that explore how information moved locally and globally during World War II.
It was her interest in information, the internet and America’s first ladies that later led her to edit a born-digital editorial project, the Dolley Madison Digital Edition launched in 2004. It is a milestone work that is the first-ever complete edition of the former first lady’s known correspondence that is text searchable. On Monday, Shulman, a research historian at the Corcoran Department of History at the University of Virginia and the preeminent expert on Dolley Madison, was honored for her foundational work along with her distinguished career in promoting research and education on the legacies of America’s first ladies when the First Ladies Association for Research and Education (FLARE) awarded her the 2025 Lewis L. Gould Award. Read more
Wall Street Journal
Since Trump’s Return, Bets on His Brand Have Soured
Nov. 29, 2025 — Stocks and cryptocurrencies linked to President Trump are in a deep slump, leaving some of the president’s biggest fans with steep losses. Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group DJT, which operates the president’s Truth Social platform, have tumbled 75% since Trump’s inauguration. Digital “meme coins” named for Trump and First Lady Melania Trump are down 86% and 99% since inauguration day, respectively. Read more


