Hello and welcome to the Americano podcast, a series of discussions about American politics and the Trump presidency for the new Spectator USA website.

I'm joined today by Jacob Halbrun, who is editor of the national interest and a regular guest on the Americano podcast, as well as a much appreciated contributor to the Spectator USA website.

And we're going to be talking about Melania Trump.

Now, Jacob, the news this week seems to indicate that Melania Trump is engaged.

Some people are calling it a civil war within the White House,

that Melania Trump is engaged in a sort of turf war with various members of the Trump administration,

and she seems to be winning. And the way this was discovered this week was that she

released a press statement suggesting that a woman called Ricardell should be fired from her job,

and then a day later she promptly was. What's going on here? Give us a bit of insight.

Melania may be emerging as the most powerful and influential president in the White House,

that is, the de facto president.

She is the most ruthless and cunning person in the White House,

bar none. Unlike Trump, she's not subject to temper tantrums.

She wields her interventions surgically.

And in this case, National Security Advisor John Bolton tried to defend

Mira Ricardell, who is his number two. Bolton received a call in Asia indicating that he should

fire her and refused. Melania then went public, leaving President Trump no option, but to have John Kelly tell Bolton that he had

to dismiss Ricardel. Now, this was a case of the Slovene versus the Croatian, and in this case,

Melania, the Sloven, managed to oust someone that she detested, Mira Ricardelle.

Ricardel is Croatian, that's what you're...

Yes.

It's quite interesting, though, isn't it, that Melania decided to hit the nuclear button of issuing this press release.

...