President Trump tells Melania 'the people love you' during her first public appearance after surgery

First lady Melania Trump on Wednesday made her first public appearance in 26 days, accompanying President Trump to a hurricane briefing at FEMA headquarters.

“She went through a little rough patch, but she’s doing great,” the president said during his remarks at the briefing. “And we’re very proud of her.”

“She’s done a fantastic job as First Lady. The people love you,” he continued. “The people of our country love you.”

Earlier in the day, President Trump slammed the media over its coverage of the first lady during her absence from the public eye.

Melania Trump makes first

public appearance since kidney surgery

“The Fake News Media has been so unfair, and vicious, to my wife and our great First Lady, Melania. During her recovery from surgery they reported everything from near death, to facelift, to left the W.H. (and me) for N.Y. or Virginia, to abuse. All Fake, she is doing really well!” Trump tweeted.

Melania Trump’s communications office had issued a statement on May 14 that she was hospitalized for “an embolization procedure to treat a benign kidney condition,” and according to CBS News, she returned to the White House on May 19.