CHRIS CRUCIAL: Melania speaks!

PLUS: Eric Adams indicted

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1. Melania is MAGA

One of the persistent rumors in politics — usually pushed by Democrats — is that former First Lady Melania Trump isn’t a big fan of her husband or his brand of politics.

But, every time Melania speaks publicly, she makes clear that she is all in on MAGA (and the man behind it).

Witness the interview Melania gave to “Fox and Friends” host Ainsley Earhardt on Thursday. (It was Melania’s first interview in two years!)

In between promoting her new memoir — “Melania” — which was the main purpose of the interview, the former First Lady offered some insight into how she thinks about her husband and the movement he has led for the last decade.

And, over and over again, she parroted his talking points.

• On the two assassination attempts: “Is it really shocking that all of this outrageous violence goes against my husband? Especially that we hear the leaders from the opposition party and mainstream media branding him as, threat to democracy, calling him vile names? They only fueling a toxic atmosphere and giving power all of these people that they want to do harm to him.”

• On Trump surviving the attempts on his life: “I think something was watching over him. It’s almost like the country really needs him.”

• On the FBI raid of Mar-a-Lago: “I saw unpleasant stuff that nobody wants to see it.” (Melania also said the raid, which was occasioned by her husband’s refusal to turn over classified documents, made her “angry.”)

• On her husband’s impact on America: “Maybe some strong tweets but everything else, great for this country.”

• On one or two words to describe the former president: “Caring. Caring, especially for this country.”

So, yeah. Not a whole lot of space between the two of them. And certainly no signs that Melania is a) unhappy with her situation or b) married to someone with whom she harbors deep political disagreements.

Which is pretty consistent with the very limited words (and actions) from her during her time in the White House.

Remember this?

While her team initially insisted the jacket had no meaning and was not meant to send a message, Melania later admitted it did. The message?

“It was for the people and for the left-wing media who are criticizing me,” she said in 2018. “I want to show them I don't care. You could criticize whatever you want to say. But it will not stop me to do what I feel is right.”

(Sidebar: She was going to visit a children’s shelter on Texas’ southern border.)

Seems like the sort of performative move — designed to get people talking — that Donald Trump has made famous/infamous, right?

The point here is this: As delicious as it is for liberals to imagine that even his wife doesn’t like him (or agree with him on politics/policy), everything we know about Melania that she and Donald are cut from the exact same cloth.

2. Eric Adams, call your office

Hours after I wrote about the decision by New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez to call for New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ resignation, Adams was indicted!

The indictment alleges that Adams accepted bribes from the Turkish government in exchange for official acts that helped the country. The prosecuting U.S. attorney said that Turkish officials “showered” Adams with gifts. (I thought the Turks were known for their baths???)

Adams has denied the charges — and insisted he will remain in office. “I ask New Yorkers to wait to hear our defense,” Adams said Thursday after the charges were unsealed.

If Adams does resign, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams would become acting mayor. Williams, unlike the centrist Adams, is an unapologetic liberal. Williams would be tasked with scheduling a special election to fill out the remaining year (or so) on Adams’ term. That race would likely happen before the end of the year.

Even before the indictment, there was a quartet of Democrats running against Adams as he prepared to seek a 2nd term next November. Another high profile name has emerged of late as well: Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

The New York City charter allows Gov. Kathy Hochul to remove the mayor when he or she has been charged with a crime. Hochul, who has loads of political problems of her own, hasn’t said anything about that possibility. She and Adams are political allies.

3. Matt Gaetz is done playing nice

Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz announced Thursday that he will no longer voluntarily cooperate in the House Ethics Committee investigation into him.

“Asking about my sexual history as a single man with adult women is a bridge too far,” Gaetz wrote in a lengthy letter to the committee that he also posted on X.

The Ethics Committee has been looking into a laundry list of allegations against Gaetz including sexual misconduct, illicit drug use, accepting improper gifts and obstructing investigations into his conduct. The investigation has been ongoing since July 2021.

Over the summer we learned some details about the House investigation — via a public letter released by the committee. Here’s how Politico characterized it:

The bipartisan committee, in a statement, defended its long-running probe — saying it was “confident in the integrity of the process” — and disclosed that it had conducted more than a dozen interviews, issued 25 subpoenas and received thousands of pages of documents as part of the investigation.

At the heart of the investigation are allegations that Gaetz had a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl — and paid for her to travel with him across state lines. The investigation was originally led by the Justice Department. But, in 2023, Justice declined to press charges. At that point, the Ethics Committee restarted its investigation.

Gaetz has long insisted the investigation is the work of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy who, he argues, has a vendetta against him. (Gaetz was responsible for the effort that led to McCarthy’s ouster last fall.)

The ongoing investigation has not dulled Gaetz’s political star. He crushed a McCarthy-backed primary challenge in August. And he is widely seen as a potential candidate for governor of Florida in 2026.

NOTABLE QUOTABLE

“Lying to the American people has consequences. Smartmatic will not stop until the perpetrators are held accountable.” — A Smartmatic spokesperson following the news that NewsMax had settled with the election technology company on the eve of a defamation trial concerning the 2020 election

ONE GOOD CHART

Need proof that Congress doesn’t really work anymore? The last time all 12 appropriation bills — governing spending across the government — passed the House and Senate by the October 1 annual deadline? Try 1997. (Chart via Axios)

SONG OF THE DAY

On this day in 1981, Bruce Dickinson joined Iron Maiden. That anniversary gives me a chance to post one of the great skits in “Saturday Night Live” history. MORE COWBELL! (Also, it was not the same Bruce Dickinson! I did not know that!)

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