WASHINGTON: US First Lady Melania Trump accused her husband’s first wife Ivana of making “attention-seeking and self-serving noise” Monday, after the former Mrs.Trump jokingly referred to herself as the first lady while trying to sell her memoirs.
In an interview with ABC News to promote her new book — “Raising Trump” — the 68-year-old Ivana Trump attempted a little joke when describing her longstanding relationship with the 45th US president.
“I have the direct number to White House but I don’t really want to call him there because Melania is there, and I don’t really want to cause any kind of jealousy or something like that because I’m basically first Trump wife, OK? I’m first lady, OK?” she told ABC, with a laugh.
Melania Trump, 47 and normally very reserved, was not amused.
“Mrs. Trump has made the White House a home for Barron and the president,” said a tersely worded statement from her spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham, published by CNN. Barron is the Trumps’ young son.
“She loves living in Washington, DC, and is honored by her role as First Lady of the United States.”
“She plans to use her title and role to help children, not sell books,” Grisham said.
She added: “There is clearly no substance to this statement from an ex. This is unfortunately only attention-seeking and self-serving noise.”
Ivana Trump is the mother of Trump’s three eldest children: Donald Jr, Ivanka and Eric.
The former real estate magnate has two other children: Tiffany, with his second wife, Marla Maples, and 11-year-old Barron — who lives with his parents at the White House.
Ivana, a Czech-born former model, skier and businesswoman, married Trump in 1979. The couple were a fixture on the New York celebrity circuit before divorcing in a blaze of scandal in 1992.
Trump went on to marry Maples, with whom he had been having an affair, but they divorced six years later. Melania is Trump’s third wife.
Ivana is perhaps best known for coining Trump’s nickname “The Donald.”
Ivana vs Melania: Trump’s wife and ex-wife in war of words
Ivana vs Melania: Trump’s wife and ex-wife in war of words
Christmas Eve winner in Arkansas lands a $1.817 billion Powerball lottery jackpot
- The winning numbers were 04, 25, 31, 52 and 59, with the Powerball number being 19
- The last time someone won a Powerball jackpot on Christmas Eve was in 2011, Powerball said
ARKANSAS, USA: A Powerball ticket purchased at a gas station outside Little Rock, Arkansas, won a $1.817 billion jackpot in Wednesday’s Christmas Eve drawing, ending the lottery game’s three-month stretch without a top-prize winner.
The winning numbers were 04, 25, 31, 52 and 59, with the Powerball number being 19. The winning ticket was sold at a Murphy USA in Cabot, lottery officials in Arkansas said Thursday. No one answered the phone Thursday at the location, which was closed for Christmas. The community of roughly 27,000 people is 26 miles (42 kilometers) northeast of Little Rock.
Final ticket sales pushed the jackpot higher than previous expected, making it the second-largest in US history and the largest Powerball prize of 2025, according to www.powerball.com. The jackpot had a lump sum cash payment option of $834.9 million.
“Congratulations to the newest Powerball jackpot winner! This is truly an extraordinary, life-changing prize,” Matt Strawn, Powerball Product Group Chair and Iowa Lottery CEO, was quoted as saying by the website. “We also want to thank all the players who joined in this jackpot streak — every ticket purchased helps support public programs and services across the country.”
The prize followed 46 consecutive drawings in which no one matched all six numbers.
The last drawing with a jackpot winner was Sept. 6, when players in Missouri and Texas won $1.787 billion.
Organizers said it is the second time the Powerball jackpot has been won by a ticket sold in Arkansas. It first happened in 2010.
The last time someone won a Powerball jackpot on Christmas Eve was in 2011, Powerball said. The company added that the sweepstakes also has been won on Christmas Day four times, most recently in 2013.
Powerball’s odds of 1 in 292.2 million are designed to generate big jackpots, with prizes growing as they roll over when no one wins. Lottery officials note that the odds are far better for the game’s many smaller prizes.
“With the prize so high, I just bought one kind of impulsively. Why not?” Indianapolis glass artist Chris Winters said Wednesday.
Tickets cost $2, and the game is offered in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.
