Melania Trump unprepared for first lady, never thought Donald would win: Vanity Fair

First lady Melania Trump pauses as a ballerina performs a piece from The Nutcracker behind her among the 2017 holiday decorations in the Grand Foyer of the White House in Washington. Photo / AP

President Trump has pushed back against a report that says his wife Melania was unprepared for the role as first lady, didn't want it and never thought he'd win.

The piece, in Vanity Fair, quoted an anonymous long-time friend of the Trumps as saying that the first lady "didn't want this come hell or high water."

The president on Tuesday took to Twitter, where he referred to his wife as "our great and very hard working First Lady, who truly loves what she is doing."

Melania, our great and very hard working First Lady, who truly loves what she is doing, always thought that "if you run, you will win." She would tell everyone that, "no doubt, he will win." I also felt I would win (or I would not have run) - and Country is doing great!

"She would tell everyone that, 'no doubt, he will win,'" Trump added, also relaying that "I also felt I would win (or I would not have run)."

Melania, our great and very hard working First Lady, who truly loves what she is doing, always thought that “if you run, you will win.” She would tell everyone that, “no doubt, he will win.” I also felt I would win (or I would not have run) - and Country is doing great!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 28, 2017

In recent days, the White House has been heavily promoting the first lady's role in preparing for the holiday season.

That included a retweet by Trump on Tuesday of a tweet by his wife in which she relayed that "the decorations are up! @WhiteHouse is ready to celebrate!" The tweet was also accompanied by a video.

The decorations are up! @WhiteHouse is ready to celebrate! Wishing you a Merry Christmas & joyous holiday season! pic.twitter.com/d6ZuyeFvrw

— Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) November 27, 2017

The president's tweet on Tuesday drew some fierce reactions, including a response on Twitter by Patti Solis Doyle, a former aide to both Hillary Clinton and former president Barack Obama.

"Nobody thought u would win," she wrote.

"It stunned the nation. And every day Americans face the dire consequences of your election. We spend our days explaining to our children that @realDonaldTrump is NOT the way we expect them to behave--liar, not prepared, offensive."