Melania Trump breaks her silence on claims her son Barron has autism - and reveals how incident inspired her as First Lady

Melania Trump has addressed claims that her son Barron has autism for the first time in her new book.

The former First Lady quashed the rumors, which began in the wake of her husband Donald Trump's election in 2016.

Barron was just ten-years-old when one of the former president's biggest critics, comedian Rosie O'Donnell, sparked speculation Barron may have the condition.

Melania said that the 'bullying' he was subjected to afterwards made it impossible to accept O'Donnell's eventual apology and accused the her of acting in 'sheer malice'.

But she also revealed how it inspired her to focus her child-centric Be Best initiative on childhood welfare and online bullying. 

'Barron's experience of being bullied both online and in real life following the incident is a clear indication of the irreparable damage caused,' the New York Times reports that she wrote in her memoir. 'No apology can undo the harm inflicted upon him.' 

Melania took aim at O'Donnell, who has an autistic daughter and claimed she had recirculated the rumors in an attempt to bring awareness to the condition.

'There is nothing shameful about autism (though O'Donnell's tweet implied that there was), but Barron is not autistic,' she writes, according to an extract on the Daily Beast.

She explained how O'Donnell had reposted a video speculating about how Barron's behavior could indicate he has the condition.

'Someone had painstakingly compiled the footage and added captions like, "His hands are moving erratically and aren't touching each other. Then he was spotted making strange movements in his seat, typical of children with autism".' 

She described the video as 'devastating as a parent' and accused O'Donnell of 'sheer malice'.

'I was appalled by such cruelty,' Melania continues. 'It was clear to me that she was not interested in raising awareness about autism. I felt that she was attacking my son because she didn't like my husband.' 

Trump and O'Donnell had been in a long-standing feud which famously included the former president joking about making derogatory comments about the TV producer when challenged about his misogyny by former Fox news anchor Megyn Kelly in the first Republican debate.

 'You've called women fat pigs, dogs, slobs, disgusting animals,' Kelly said, before Trump interjected and said, 'Only Rosie O'Donnell.'

She also details her surprise at the 'resistance I encountered from tech executives' from social media companies and other online giants, when she convened with their leaders at the White House in March 2018 to discuss child safety.

One of the biggest revelations from the memoir is Melania's affirmation of abortion rights, which marks a stark contrast to her husband's.

'A woman's fundamental right of individual liberty, to her own life, grants her the authority to terminate her pregnancy if she wishes,' she writes. 

'Restricting a woman's right to choose whether to terminate an unwanted pregnancy is the same as denying her control over her own body.' 

On most other issues however, she appears to hold similar views to her husband's including casting aspersions on the validity of the 2020 election result.

 'You can't continue to count votes for days, which is what they did,' she writes, seeming to explain her lack of condemnation for the January 6 storming of the Capitol.

'It was a mess. Many Americans still have doubts about the election to this day. I am not the only person who questions the results.'

Melania also addresses the 2018 firestorm around her decision to wear a jacket emblazoned with the words, 'I really don't care, do you?' while visiting migrant children in Texas.

The sartorial faux pas came at a time when her husband's administration was overseeing a policy at the southern border which led to thousands of families being separated

The former first lady blames the policy on then-attorney general Jeff Sessions and claims she personally lobbied her husband to undo it.'

The government should not be taking children away from their parents,' recalls telling him. 'This has to stop.' 

The decision to wear the jacket is painted as a swipe at the media's 'skewed narratives' rather than connected to the visit.

Her defense of her husband even extends to her depiction of their marriage, which notably glosses over several scandals during campaign and time in office.

These include his infamous boast about being able to grab women by the genitals which was caught on tape and released in 2016, as well as allegations he paid hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels.

Instead, Melania paints a picture of a unified front, with the two of them sharing a love for Elton John and penning letters to the UK's King Charles.

The former First Lady also details being given to a front row seat by some of the most significant moments in history by her husband, such as being invited to watch a military raid on the ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.