Five takeaways from Melania Trump’s new book

Mrs Trump revealed some of the most controversial remarks from her book before it was actually published, posting on social media last week that women have a right to “individual freedom”.

In her memoir, she lays out her position on the issue.

“It is imperative to guarantee that women have autonomy in deciding their preference of having children, based on their own convictions, free from any intervention or pressure from the government,” she writes.

“A woman’s fundamental right of individual liberty, to her own life, grants her the authority to terminate her pregnancy if she wishes,” she added.

Mrs Trump has since faced a backlash for the remarks, including from anti-abortion activists within the Republican Party.

As Democrats have used the issue of reproductive rights to galvanize voters, Trump has flip flopped on the issue. He has taken credit for helping overturn Roe v Wade, upending the constitutional right to abortion. Other times, he has criticised Republican abortion bans as too strict.

But Trump has said he encouraged his wife to speak her mind about the issue.

“We spoke about it. And I said, you have to write what you believe,” he told Fox News last week.