Breaking: Plagiarized portions of Melania Trump's RNC speech not in speechwriter's draft, NBC reports

And with that, blame for the error might lie only with Melania and not a saboteur speechwriter

Published July 19, 2016 10:49PM (EDT)

Melania Trump   (AP/Charles Rex Arbogast)
Melania Trump (AP/Charles Rex Arbogast)

As the delegate roll call took place, NBC News' Hallie Jackson provided MSNBC viewers an update to the parallel story of Melania Trump's alleged plagiarism of Michelle Obama's 2008 Democratic National Convention speech on Monday night.

Trump's campaign maintained on Tuesday that Melania's speech was not plagiarized, however Jackson reported the GOP nominee's wife added the cribbed bits after accomplished speechwriter Matt Scully — hired to write the speech — turned in his draft.

Trump backers and party officials bent over backwards to defend Melania — with RNC Chief Strategist Sean Spicer citing the women's speeches' similarities to dialogue from child's television show "My Little Pony."

Short of proving Melania knowingly plagiarized, the development places unequivocal responsibility on Mrs. Trump, and not her speechwriter, perhaps putting to rest any sabotage theories.


By Brendan Gauthier

Brendan Gauthier is a freelance writer.

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Elections 2016 Melania Trump Michelle Obama Rnc 2016