The Life of Model Turned First Lady Melania Trump

Melania became a U.S. citizen in 2006, completing a years-long immigration process. In the years that followed, she sponsored her parents’ green cards through family-based immigration, the same system critics later labeled “chain migration,” even as her family used it legally and traditionally.

Her parents spent significant time in Trump Tower, helping with Barron’s upbringing and forming a tight household unit. This arrangement offered Melania consistency and support amid Trump’s demanding schedule and increasingly public career.