First lady Melania Trump is taking a more active role in policy during President Donald Trump’s second term, pressing lawmakers on foster care reform, child safety online and the return of children displaced by the Russia-Ukraine war, according to a new POLITICO report.
The most immediate focus is “Fostering the Future,” legislation aimed at helping young people aging out of the foster care system access housing, education and workforce training programs. The effort followed President Trump’s November 2025 executive order on the issue.
In April, the first lady hosted a bipartisan roundtable on Capitol Hill to build support for the measure. Rep. Jason Smith (R-Mo.), chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, said he was initially “fearful” about the event because “Democrats really don’t like her husband.”
But Trump made the case anyway. During the public portion, she noted that only 3 percent of children in foster care earn a college degree and called the legislation a “moral imperative.” Behind closed doors, Smith said, she set a clear deadline.
“I want this on Donald’s desk by the August recess,” she said.
The House later passed the bill unanimously. At the White House congressional picnic, President Trump urged quick Senate action while standing beside the first lady.
“Hopefully, it will quickly pass in the Senate,” the president said. “I’m sure it will. It’s a great thing.”
As of early July, however, the measure had not advanced out of committee in the Senate, leaving the first lady’s August deadline approaching.
Democrats involved in the effort praised her involvement. Rep. Danny Davis (D-Ill.), the ranking Democrat on the Ways and Means subcommittee on work and welfare, said “I think it made all of us feel good” to have the first lady engaged on foster care despite broader political disagreements.
“It’s been great to work knowing that the first lady shares some of the same thoughts and ideas, and I think her support has been very helpful in moving the agenda forward,” Davis said.
Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) said “the First Lady has shown an interest and passion in helping foster youth, and it’s wonderful that she is lifting up their needs.”
Marc Beckman, senior exclusive adviser to the first lady, said the bipartisan cooperation “meant a lot to her.”
The foster care push is part of a broader shift from Trump’s first term, when she was best known for the “Be Best” initiative and other awareness campaigns. In the second term, she has moved more directly into legislation, technology policy and foreign affairs.
She worked with lawmakers on the Take It Down Act, signed by the president in May 2025, which targets nonconsensual intimate images and artificial intelligence-generated deepfakes. She has also been involved in efforts to return children displaced or abducted during the Russia-Ukraine war, and in September hosted Cabinet officials and technology executives to discuss artificial intelligence in children’s education.
Beckman said the first lady’s lower public profile is intentional.
“She’s pursuing ‘Melania Trump’s playbook,’” Beckman said. “First lady Melania Trump is locked in. She is looking to achieve more than any first lady before in history.”
Trump rarely campaigns with the president and seldom appears on television. But Beckman said she remains focused on her chosen issues.
“She doesn’t decide to do anything based on what the media might say,” he said. “There’s so much important work that she’s doing.”
On the Russia-Ukraine child reunification effort, Beckman said images of displaced children “really impacted her.” Trump wrote a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin early in the term and has continued pressing the issue.
“She and her representative are continuing forward with working towards getting as many children back with their families as she can, she’s very committed to it… she’s not looking at nations or borders,” Beckman said.
Beckman also said the first lady wants peace in Ukraine, Russia and Iran, marking the first time her team has publicly stated her position on Iran.
In her memoir, Trump described feeling like an “outsider” during the first term and said she wanted to pursue a more personal agenda beyond “mere policy and awareness-driven work.”
Beckman described her style as “quiet” but “very impactful.”
“She speaks from time to time when it’s important,” he said. “Otherwise, she doesn’t need to speak at all,” a rarity in Washington and something nice for a change.
