Former US Attorney General Bill Barr revealed in his new book that former First Lady Melania Trump saved his job.
In One Damn Think After Another, Mr Barr recalls meeting Ms Trump, who he called "elegant" and "intelligent." He also noted an encounter with former President Donald Trump during which the then-Commander in Chief told him she was the only reason he had a job in the administration.
“You know what saved you?” Mr Trump reportedly asked Mr Barr after his confirmation hearing. “Melania. She came to your rescue. She is now your biggest fan.”
Mr Barr responded by saying he "could tell she has good sense."
Mr Trump then reportedly told Mr Barr the details of his wife's endorsement.
“We were watching the hearing together, and when I got angry, she said, ‘Are you crazy? Look at him. Right out of central casting. He looks and acts like an Attorney General! Leave him alone — he is carrying himself just right, and he will be confirmed, which is what you need,’” Mr Trump said, according to the book.
Mr Barr then admits that he "always thought Melania was smarter than the President."
The former attorney general has cooled on Mr Trump in the months since the former President left office. He spends time in his memoir urging Republicans to move away from Mr Trump as the leader of the party.
According to a Wall Street Journal preview of the book, Mr Barr recalls his battles with the former president, and dismisses Mr Trump's claims that he was "robbed" of the 2020 election.
"The election was not 'stolen.' Trump lost it," he writes.
In the book, Mr Barr reportedly writes that Mr Trump "lost his grip" following the 2020 election and firmly blamed his subsequent conspiracy theorising for inspiring the Capitol riot.
"The absurd lengths to which he took his ‘stolen election’ claim led to the rioting on Capitol Hill,” Mr Barr writes.
The lashing continues throughout the book, with Mr Barr claiming that Mr Trump "has shown he has neither the temperament nor persuasive powers to provide the kind of positive leadership that is needed," and said he lacked "a modicum of self-restraint."
He advised Republicans to look toward the GOP's "impressive array of younger candidates" who agree with Mr Trump's agenda, but – in his estimation – lack the former president's "erratic personal behaviour."
