--- title: Melania Trump Misses Opportunity in Nashville Trip description: First Lady Melania Trump's visit to Nashville should have been a simple public relations moment, but it barely broke through thanks to her husband. canonical: https://time.com/5348856/melania-trump-nashville-missed-opportunity/ author: Brian Bennett article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-07-25T20:01:25.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-31T11:42:18.165Z article:section: Politics og:title: How a Simple Trip to Nashville Became a Missed Opportunity for Melania Trump og:description: It should have been an easy publicity move. og:url: https://time.com/5348856/melania-trump-nashville-missed-opportunity/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt49202a2c823b5450/6989363d929fad0f9dbf12bc/melania-trump-nashville.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4182 og:image:height: 2352 og:image:alt: Melania Trump Nashville Children's Hospital og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: How a Simple Trip to Nashville Became a Missed Opportunity for Melania Trump twitter:description: It should have been an easy publicity move. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt49202a2c823b5450/6989363d929fad0f9dbf12bc/melania-trump-nashville.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # How a Simple Trip to Nashville Became a Missed Opportunity for Melania Trump > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=bc4e2eb7-b63f-46df-9640-1bc51ccba7b5&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Monday to Saturday (3x per week) | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Philip Elliott, Senior Correspondent | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership The policy influence ecosystem. A policy-focused audience spanning government, public affairs, advocacy, law, research, political media, and the institutions that make, interpret and respond to public policy. ### TIME D.C. Brief: key statements * D.C. Brief is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * D.C. Brief is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=bc4e2eb7-b63f-46df-9640-1bc51ccba7b5&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/subscribe?i=bc4e2eb7-b63f-46df-9640-1bc51ccba7b5&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's politics newsletter? D.C. Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Brian Bennett](https://time.com/author/brian-bennett/)  ## Brian Bennett Bennett is the senior White House correspondent at TIME. Jul 25, 2018 8:01 PM UTC  US First Lady Melania Trump blows bubbles as she visits with patients following a roundtable discussion on neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) during a visit to Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tennessee, on July 24, 2018, as part of her "Be Best" campaign. US First Lady Melania Trump blows bubbles as she visits with patients following a roundtable discussion on neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) during a visit to Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tennessee, on July 24, 2018, as part of her "Be Best" campaign. Saul Loeb — AFP — Getty Images  by [Brian Bennett](https://time.com/author/brian-bennett/)  ## Brian Bennett Bennett is the senior White House correspondent at TIME. Jul 25, 2018 8:01 PM UTC First Lady Melania Trump sat down without speaking when she joined a roundtable discussion on Tuesday inside a room decorated like a movie theater at a children’s hospital in Nashville. As medical experts described the challenges faced by babies born to mothers struggling with the effects of heroin and prescription drug abuse, Trump listened attentively, nodding, sometimes showing her concern with an earnest squint, and occasionally mouthing “thank you.” The event had all the stagecraft deployed for decades by First Ladies wanting to bring attention to a heartbreaking social ill — in this case the intractable opioid crisis gripping the country. But there would be no sound bite of the First Lady addressing the epidemic for the evening news. Before the cameras could record the First Lady addressing the group, reporters traveling with her were hustled out of the room. It was a small moment, but one that set in relief the challenge the First Lady has faced in balancing her own personal reticence to engage with the press with her desire to bring attention to her “Be Best” initiative focused on children’s health and happiness. Melania Trump’s spokeswoman, Stephanie Grisham, told TIME that reporters had to leave the room to protect the privacy of patients at the facility, and she later provided quotes from the discussion that took place afterward for print and online reporters to use. The First Lady told the room that her passion is to shine a light on the opioid crisis, Grisham said, and she believes in starting early to educate young mothers and children about the dangers of drugs. “I believe the more we talk about this, the shame and guilt will go away,” the First Lady said. **Read More:** [_Melania Trump Is Redefining One of the World’s Weirdest Jobs_](http://time.com/5324709/melania-trump-first-lady-2/) Later in the afternoon, reporters watched as the First Lady blew bubbles and crouched down to hug and play trains with children in a playroom at the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt. She complimented 4-year-old patient Essence Overton on her painted nails and showed the charmed little girl her own nails. “Yours are all different colors. I like that,” Trump told the girl. But any chance that Melania Trump’s message could reach the public was hurt when her husband took the stage to address the annual Veterans of Foreign Wars convention in Kansas City, Missouri, on Tuesday. Treating the event more like a campaign rally, Donald Trump criticized the “fake news,” claiming that “what you’re seeing and what you’re reading is not what’s happening.” The remark [drew widespread comparisons](http://time.com/5347737/trump-quote-george-orwell-vfw-speech/) to a quote from George Orwell, and the VFW [later apologized](https://www.nbcnews.com/card/vfw-disappointed-members-booed-journalists-during-trump-speech-n894271) for the fact that some in attendance had booed journalists. Later in the day, [an audio recording](http://time.com/5347913/donald-trump-tape-cohen-playboy-model-karen-mcdougal/) of Donald Trump talking with former personal lawyer Michael Cohen about making a payment to a Playboy model surfaced and the New York _Times_ [published a story](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/24/us/politics/trump-putin-cnn.html) about how the president was upset on a recent trip on Air Force One when he saw the First Lady’s TV was tuned to CNN instead of Fox News, which led Grisham to issue a statement that Melania Trump watches “any channel she wants.” Melania Trump is popular. Her approval ratings are [consistently above 50 percent](https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/19/politics/melania-poll-dip/index.html). And her husband, whose [ratings hover in the low 40s and high 30s](https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/trump-approval-ratings/), might benefit from some of her reflected glow. The First Lady is planning to ramp up her public appearances in the fall. But she won’t break through unless her voice is heard. Grisham argued that she’s not necessarily trying to draw attention with her public activities. “Mrs. Trump is not one to seek out attention and does not do things simply for a photo op,” she told TIME in an email. “Her focus is to help children in every way that she can, and use her role as FLOTUS for good — she remains focused on her efforts and that will not change.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5348856/melania-trump-nashville-missed-opportunity/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5348856/melania-trump-nashville-missed-opportunity/"},"headline":"How a Simple Trip to Nashville Became a Missed Opportunity for Melania Trump","datePublished":"2018-07-25T20:01:25.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T11:42:18.165Z","description":"First Lady Melania Trump's visit to Nashville should have been a simple public relations moment, but it barely broke through thanks to her husband.","url":"https://time.com/5348856/melania-trump-nashville-missed-opportunity/","keywords":["Melania Trump","White House","Donald Trump"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt49202a2c823b5450/6989363d929fad0f9dbf12bc/melania-trump-nashville.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Brian Bennett","jobTitle":"Bennett is the senior White House correspondent at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/brian-bennett/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt49202a2c823b5450/6989363d929fad0f9dbf12bc/melania-trump-nashville.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Melania Trump Nashville Children's Hospital","caption":"Melania Trump blows bubbles","creditText":"Saul Loeb — AFP — Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/melania-trump/","name":"Melania Trump"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5348856/melania-trump-nashville-missed-opportunity/","name":"How a Simple Trip to Nashville Became a Missed Opportunity for Melania Trump"}}]}] ```