Melania Trump accused of plagiarizing Mrs Obama’s 2008 convention speech

By Onitsha Shedrack——

Melania Trump, the wife of the presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, on Monday night took centre stage on the first day of the Republican National Convention, however she is currently facing accusations that a portion of her speech plagiarised Michelle Obama.

Twitter began buzzing soon after the 15-minute speech wrapped up, in which Mrs Trump praised her husband, Donald Trump, for his tenacity: “If you want someone to fight for you and your country, I can assure you that he’s the guy,” she said.

Mrs Trump’s speech also praised her husband as a “compassionate” man who would “fight for the country”.

Meanwhile observers and speech analyst noticed striking similarities in her speech with one that first lady Michelle Obama made at the 2008 Democratic National Convention.

It was her first speech of the campaign and she had the help of a speechwriting team.

Refuting the alleged plagiarism by Mrs Trump, Mr Trump’s communications adviser Jason Miller issued a statement saying: “In writing her beautiful speech, Melania’s team of writers took notes on her life’s inspirations, and in some instances included fragments that reflected her own thinking.

“Melania’s immigrant experience and love for America shone through in her speech, which made it such a success.”

Meanwhile Mr Trump himself described speech as “absolutely incredible”.

In a section, Mrs Trump said: “My parents impressed on me the values that you work hard for what you want in life; that your word is your bond and you do what you say and keep your promise; that you treat people with respect.”

Mrs Obama’s 2008 convention speech carried the lines: “And Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values: that you work hard for what you want in life; that your word is your bond and you do what you say you’re going to do; that you treat people with dignity and respect, even if you don’t know them, and even if you don’t agree with them.”

Mrs Trump’s speech continued: “[My parents] taught me to show the values and morals in my daily life. That is the lesson that I continue to pass along to our son. And we need to pass those lessons on to the many generations to follow, because we want our children in this nation to know that the only limit to your achievements is the strength of your dreams and your willingness to work for them.”

Mrs Obama said: “And Barack Obama and I set out to build lives guided by these values, and pass them on to the next generations. Because we want our children, and all children in this nation, to know that the only limit to the height of your achievement is the reach of your dreams and your willingness to work for them.”

The Slovenian-born former model had used the speech to portray her husband as a tough but compassionate unifying force.

“He’s tough when he has to be but he’s also kind and fair and caring,” Mrs Trump said.

“The kindness is not always noted, but it’s there for all to see. That is one reason I fell in love with him to begin with.”

Mrs Trump has kept a lower profile compared with other spouses of major candidates, throughout the Trump’s campaign, while his grown up children have often been more prominent.