Former First Lady Melania Trump has kept a low profile thus far in the election cycle, a fact which has not gone unnoticed by political observers.

Yet according to one associate, Mrs. Trump has responded to criticism of her campaign absence by drawing a contrast between herself and First Lady Jill Biden. 

"I don't need to stand by Donald like Jill Biden"

Stephanie Grisham serves as the former first lady's White House press secretary as well as her chief-of-staff, and she recently relayed a remark to the Daily Mail that Mrs. Trump made in March.

"Melania has said, 'I don't need to stand by Donald like Jill Biden; it is like she's holding Joe Biden up,'" Grisham was quoted as telling the newspaper.

The Daily Mail noted that Mrs. Trump has only turned up at a few political events since her husband left office in January of 2021.

The first was a rally at their Mar-a-Lago resort in November of 2022 to kick off the start of Mr. Trump's campaign, while the second involved showing up at a polling station for the midterm election earlier that month.

Source says Mrs. Trump plans to spend a lot of time with Barron

What's more, the former first lady has also helped to organize a pair of fundraisers for the Log Cabin Republicans at Mar-a-Lago and Trump Tower.

An unnamed source explained to the Daily Mail that Mrs. Trump will likely stay out of the limelight should her husband get reelected this fall.

"She's a hands-on mother and is already planning to spend part of every month – and potentially every week – in NYC" if her son Barron goes to college there, the source stated.

Meanwhile, there is growing evidence that Mrs. Trump's claim that her successor has been holding the president up is true in a literal sense.

Report: First lady has become president's "stage manager"

The New York Post reported that Mrs. Biden had to physically help her husband exit the stage following his disastrous date with Trump.

Jill Biden helps Joe off stage after disastrous debate showing: ‘This says it all’ https://t.co/JeYKB6V0Gh pic.twitter.com/deNfTlK8Dc

— New York Post (@nypost) June 28, 2024

What's more, Fox News reported in February that the first lady has "taken on the role of stage manager for her husband."

That position is said to have come about after following "repeated instances of the president hesitating or wandering in the wrong direction after making remarks."