On Monday, Melania Trump took some time to address the flagship issue she vowed to champion as first lady. At a luncheon, she addressed a room full of governors’ spouses and called for the need for adults to encourage “positive habits on social media and technology” among their children, going so far as to suggest “even limiting time online.”
“I am asking you all to join me today and commit to promoting values such as encouragement, kindness, compassion, and respect in our children,” she said. “With those values as a solid foundation, our kids will be better equipped to deal with many of the evils in our world today, such as drug abuse and addiction and negative social media interactions.”
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But “kindness, compassion, and respect” aren’t really the words that come to mind when you look at how her husband behaves online. Take, for example, Trump’s incessant, often culturally insensitive name-calling:
Or this one, which people worried would start a war:
And remember the time he made this not-so-subtle suggestion about New York senator Kirsten Gillibrand?
Or when he retweeted those anti-Muslim videos from that British far-right activist group Britain First to the joy of former KKK leader David Duke?
And, I mean, come on:
If the only people not having “negative social media interactions” with the president of the United States are former Klan leaders, anti-Muslim activists, and accused child molesters, maybe Melania could target her anti-cyberbullying agenda to one cyberbully in particular. “Limiting time online” might be a good start.
Before Melania’s speech on Monday, Lauren Hogg, a teenager who survived the recent school shooting in Parkland, Florida, reached out to the first lady about her platform. She pointed Melania to the conspiracy theories that started swirling around her brother, Stoneman Douglas senior David Hogg, after he spoke out against gun violence—theories Donald Trump Jr. helped propel online.
At the end of the day, perhaps it’s the kids who know more about promoting positive online interactions than the adults.
Correction 2/28: An earlier version of this headline erroneously stated that Melania Trump gave a speech to US governors. The luncheon was for the spouses of governors. This headline has been updated.
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