Did Melania Trump lift her speech from Michelle Obama's 2008 address? You decide

Melania Trump’s well-received speech Monday to the Republican National Convention contained two passages that match nearly word-for-word the speech that first lady Michelle Obama delivered in 2008 at the Democratic National Convention. The passages in question focus on lessons that Melania Trump, the wife of presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, said she learned from her parents and the relevance of their lessons in her experience as a mother. They came near the beginning of her roughly 10-minute speech, which was otherwise distinct from the address that Michelle Obama gave when her husband, then-Sen. Barack Obama, was being nominated for president. [caption id=“attachment_2901580” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Melania Trump, wife of Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump at the Republican National Convention. AP[/caption] In Melania’s speech in Cleveland, she said: “From a young age, my parents impressed on me the values that you work hard for what you want in life, that your word is your bond and you do what you say and keep your promise, that you treat people with respect. They taught and showed me values and morals in their daily life.” In Michelle Obama’s 2008 speech in Denver, she said: “And Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values: like, you work hard for what you want in life, that your word is your bond, that you do what you say you’re going to do, that you treat people with dignity and respect, even if you don’t know them and even if you don’t agree with them.” Another passage with notable similarities that follows two sentences later in Melania’s speech addresses her attempts to instill those values in her son. “We need to pass those lessons on to the many generations to follow,” said Melania. “Because we want our children in this nation to know that the only limit to your achievements is the strength of your dreams and your willingness to work for them.” In the First Lady’s 2008 speech, she said, “Barack and I set out to build lives guided by these values and to pass them onto the next generation, because we want our children — and all children in this nation — to know that the only limit to the height of your achievements is the reach of your dreams and your willingness to work hard for them.” Trump’s campaign had no immediate reaction when asked about the similarities in the two speeches. White House officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment late Monday evening. In an interview with NBC News taped ahead of her convention appearance and posted online early Tuesday, Melania Trump said of her speech, “I wrote it.” She added that she had “a little help.” Here are some Twitter reactions:

CORRECTION: Melania stole a whole graph from Michelle's speech. #GOPConvention
WATCH: https://t.co/8BCOwXAHSy pic.twitter.com/zudpDznGng

— jarrett hill (@jarretthill) July 19, 2016

More on the similarities between Melania Trump's speech & Michelle Obama's speech https://t.co/DsKbqBaV2e pic.twitter.com/Y5ldYzkxLm

— Javier Panzar (@jpanzar) July 19, 2016

More from World

Trump gets a shot in his tariff arm: US budget deficit falls $35 bn import duty revenue rises ‘Call me if...’: Lutnick says ‘Koreans’ should have sought his help to fix Hyundai visa issue

Is this real? https://t.co/HwraiTATSx

— jesse Williams. (@iJesseWilliams) July 19, 2016

On the other hand, early drafts of Melania Trump's speech were much more awkward. pic.twitter.com/5Tvv7jz5Qq

— Paul Fairie (@paulisci) July 19, 2016

Impact Shorts

More Shorts

French MPs call for social media ban for under-15s, digital curfew for teenagers

Nepal's Gen Z groups accept constitution to resolve crisis after talks with govt

Guess Melania Trump is just like @realDonaldTrump .. can't come up with an original thought so they just copy others. #RNCinCLE

— Triggs (@Triggs390) July 19, 2016