Melania Trump spoke to the press in the Oval Office on Wednesday – an unusual move from the first lady, who rarely speaks off the cuff.
Her comments came when she welcomed Polish President Andrzej Duda and his wife Agata Kornhauser-Duda to the White House.
‘It is great to have them here again. I’m looking forward to talking with Mrs. Duda about children, what they are facing in our country, what they are facing in Poland as we did the first time. And we will continue to do so,’ the first lady said.
The well-being of children is a corner stone of Melania Trump’s Be Best campaign.
Melania Trump spoke to the press in the Oval Office
The first lady welcomed her Polish counter part, Agata Kornhauser-Duda, to the White House
The Trumps and the Dudas watch F-35s fly over the White House
Melania Trump rarely makes comments to the press
The first lady also joined the president and members of his staff for an update on the administration’s efforts to combat the opioid crisis.
‘I always say love yourself more than you love drugs,’ she advised.
She also talked about how her Be Best initiative was ‘working with the families and our youth to defeat the stigma and talk about the opioid addiction problem and it’s very important to open up and ask for help.’
She promised to ‘continue to bring awareness to how dangerous drugs are.’
Melania Trump’s Be Best initiative tackles the problem of opioid addiction as one of its three pillars.
First lady Melania Trump also addressed an opioid briefing at the White House
‘I always say love yourself more than you love drugs,’ the first lady advised
Melania Trump’s Be Best initiative tackles the problem of opioid addiction as one of its three pillars
President Trump praised the first lady’s work on the opioid addiction issue
President Trump said the first lady is inspired by their son Barron, seen here at the White House in March
President Trump praised her work on the issue. Rates of deaths from suicides, drug overdoses and alcohol have reached an all-time high in the United States, according to a report from the Commonwealth Fund released Wednesday.
The president said the first lady’s work was inspired, in part, by their 13-year-old son Barron.
‘She has a son that she loves, and she wants to make sure that Barron doesn’t have problems, and she wants to make sure a lot of people in this country see the suffering, the horrible suffering,’ he said.
‘I really think that we owe a lot to the first lady,’ he added.
It was an unusually talkative day for the first lady, who rarely speaks to the media or answers their questions. She will make official comments at events she attends for her Be Best campaign or for the White House but it’s unusual for her to speak extemporaneously.
It comes as she prepares to address her husband’s campaign rally in Orlando, Fla., next Tuesday, where he will officially announce his reelection campaign.
Melania Trump and Agata Kornhauser-Duda walk through the Colonnade of the White House to join their husbands’ joint press conference in the Rose Garden of the White House
Melania Trump in the Oval Office during the meeting with the Polish first couple
Polish President Andrzej Duda holds an agreement on the purchasing of F-35s as first lady Melania Trump and Agata Kornhauser-Duda watch
The two couples prepare to walk outside to watch F-35s fly over the White House
The Trumps and Duda’s stood on the South Lawn of the White House with the Washington Monument behind them
It was President Donald Trump who pointed out the two first ladies are acquainted and yielded the floor in the Oval Office to his wife.
‘The first ladies know each other. They get along with each other. They are going out to lunch,’ he said.
Melania Trump spokesperson Stephanie Grisham said the two first ladies will dine together in the green room of the White House.
‘They will have lunch in the green room,’ she told DailyMail.com.
Melania Trump wore a light pink pants suit with a Calvin Klein blazer and a white blouse for the occasion.
The two women are having their own meal while their husbands hold a working lunch.
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump greet Polish President Andrzej Duda and his wife Agata Kornhauser-Duda at the White House
Melania Trump wore a pink pants suit with a Calvin Klein blazer and Agata Kornhauser-Duda wore a black and white dress
The two couples have met before when the Trumps visited Poland and the Duda’s visited the White House last year
The two couples were having their second White House meeting
Melania Trump said she and Agata Kornhauser-Duda would discuss children’s issues
After their lunch they joined their husbands to watch F-35s fly over the White House.
Polish President Andrzej Duda and President Trump signed a purchase agreement for Poland to buy some of the fighter planes during the visit.
Melania Trump and Agata Kornhauser-Duda also sat in the front row of the joint press conference conducted by their husbands.
‘We’ve become friends,’ President Trump said of the first couple’s relationship with the Duda’s.
President Duda invited the Trumps to Poland for another visit in September to mark the 80th anniversary of the Nazi invasion, which sparked the start of World War II.
President Trump said the first couple was considering making the trip.
‘We’re looking very seriously at going back to Poland. And I don’t know what the president has in store for us, but we’re thinking about going back sometime in September, yes,’ he said.
Polish first lady Agata Kornhauser-Duda and first lady Melania Trump arrive at a joint press conference
The first lady said it was ‘great’ to have the Polish first couple at the White House
The two first ladies walking on the White House colonnade
The Trumps and Dudas walk to the South Lawn of the White House
The Duda’s greet the Trumps during their July 2017 visit to Poland
The Duda’s also visited the White House in September 2018
The Trumps and the Doda’s are well-acquainted, having exchanged previous visits.
The Trumps visited Poland in July 2017 where they spent time with the Duda’s.
Additionally the Polish first couple visited the White House in September 2018.
Melania Trump and Agata Kornhauser-Duda had lunch together in the red room of the White House during that visit.