Why Melania Trump fired her longtime friend
<p>US First Lady Melania Trump has fired her friend Stephanie Winston Wolkoff after backlash over the $US26 million ($33 million) she received to plan Donald Trump’s inauguration.</p>
<p>Mr Trump was “enraged” over the huge bill, report The New York Times.</p>
<p>Mrs Winston Wolkoff’s firm WIS Media Partners – which was established as a company just weeks before the inauguration and Mrs Trump’s first hire as first lady – spent twice as much money than Barack Obama’s inauguration despite drawing fewer people.</p>
<p><img width="433" height="325" src="http://cdn.newsapi.com.au/image/v1/6b8a8ccc94cfaeb340e38c9b23bfbae9" alt="This pair of photos shows a view of the crowd on the National Mall at the inaugurations of President Barack Obama, above, on Jan. 20, 2009, and President Donald Trump, below, on Jan. 20, 2017. Picture: AP" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"/></p>
<p>Mrs Trump’s spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said the office had “severed the gratuitous services contract with Ms. Wolkoff,” who she said had been employed as “a special government employee”.</p>
<p>“We thank her for her hard work and wish her all the best,” she said.</p>
<p>Mrs Trump and Mrs Winston Wolkoff, who was previously an event planner for Vogue, have been friends for years, with the pair regularly pictured on together.</p>
<p>Mrs Winston Wolkoff defended the exorbitant bill, saying she would continue to offer her advice to her friend Mrs Trump in an “informal” capacity.</p>
<p>“I was informed by the White House counsel’s office that all gratuitous volunteer contracts were ended,” she said. “I expect to remain a trusted source for advice and support on an informal basis.”</p>
<p>“I am proud of the work that we did to support the inauguration,” she said.</p>
<p>Mrs Winston Wolkoff said her firm “retained a total of $US1.62 million for all of its consulting and creative services, which was divided among our staff of 15 members (including myself).”</p>
<p>Mrs Trump’s spokeswoman said the first lady “had no involvement” with the inaugural committee and that she “had no knowledge of how funds were spent.”</p>
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