Ex-Melania Aide's Blunt Warning on Trump Presidency

Stephanie Grisham, the one-time chief of staff to former first lady Melania Trump, issued a grim warning on Monday about the prospect of a second Donald Trump presidency.

Trump is currently among the packed field of candidates seeking the 2024 GOP presidential nomination as part of his bid for a second term in the White House. He has long led the race by a considerable margin, with national polling averages consistently giving him near or over 50 percent support from likely Republican voters. In a hypothetical general election rematch between Trump and President Joe Biden, the two candidates' polling has generally been neck-and-neck.

Grisham previously served as a staffer in the Trump White House, first working under Melania Trump before moving on to positions like White House press secretary and communications director. She resigned from her post following the January 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot and has since emerged as a vocal critic of Trump and his continued political ambitions.

On Monday, Grisham appeared on CNN where, among other things, she touched on the prospect of her former boss getting a second term as president, and offered a grim warning about what that might entail.

"It's important for people who were like me or who are like me now, who really believe in him, to understand how another Trump presidency will be," Grisham said. "So what is democracy? That's people having the freedom to act and speak freely. I think under Trump, you're not going to be able to do that, or you are going to be able to do that as long as you're talking about him just in positive ways."

She continued: "I think free press will be really something that's going to go by the wayside. I remember when I was press secretary, he wanted me to kick everybody off the White House grounds constantly...I think we are going to be aligned with countries like China and Russia rather than our [North Atlantic Treaty Organization] NATO allies."

Newsweek has reached out to Trump's office via email for comment.

During her CNN appearance, Grisham was also asked for her take on her former boss allegedly saying "So what?" when it was explained to him how the events of January 6 had imperiled the safety of former Vice President Mike Pence, based partially on testimony from another former Trump aide, Nick Luna. Grisham said it aligned with things that she had previously heard and praised Luna for speaking on the matter.

"It absolutely tracks with everything I've experienced and heard," she said. "He had no regard for anybody but himself that day. Nick Luna, that's another example of somebody who was by the president's side...Nick's a good guy, I believe that what he said was true and I believe that, he'd be somebody who'd definitely cooperate and I'm really glad to hear it."