Melania Trump Splits With Longtime Advisor After Scandal Involving $26 Million Inauguration Payday

First Lady Melania Trump is reported to have parted ways with longtime advisor Stephanie Winston Wolkoff after it was alleged that her firm pocketed more than $26 million as part of a contract to arrange some festivities for the 2016 inauguration.

The contract was officially terminated last week, with Trump’s spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham noting that the first lady had “severed the gratuitous services contract with Ms. Wolkoff,” according to a statement provided by the New York Times.

“We thank her for her hard work and wish her all the best,” Grishham wrote, referring to Wolkoff as “a special government employee.”

Both the first lady and President Donald Trump were reportedly displeased at the massive payday Wolkoff acquired due to her inauguration services.

Grisham said that the first lady “had no involvement” with the inaugural committee and that she “had no knowledge of how funds were spent.”

Wolkoff, for her part, has defended the exorbitant amount of money she managed to bilk out of the inaugural committee.

“I expect to remain a trusted source for advice and support on an informal basis,” she wrote in an email. “I am proud of the work that we did to support the inauguration.”

She also called news coverage on the massive payday “completely unfair.”

“There have been a number of unfair and untrue statements about me and I am reserving all rights,” she wrote.

[image via screenshot]

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