Mary Trump Shares 'First Two Things' People Should Know About Donald Trump

Mary Trump, the niece of former President Donald Trump, on Sunday outlined what she believes are the two most important points to understand about her uncle going forward in all press coverage.

The former president is currently running for a second term for the White House in 2024, with multiple polls showing him in the lead for the GOP nomination by wide margins. Despite this continued popularity, he is also facing numerous legal battles, one of which has already resulted in a historic criminal indictment, and others that could produce more indictments in the coming days and months.

Mary Trump is the daughter of the former president's older brother, Fred Trump Jr., and one of his only vocal critics from within his own family. A registered Democrat and author of two books, she emerged as an outspoken critic of her uncle's political agenda in 2020 and now frequently makes media appearances to discuss his latest doings and dissect his motivations.

During a Sunday appearance on The Katie Phang Show on MSNBC, Mary Trump was asked by host Katie Phang about how the broader media can better handle coverage of her uncle, given his continued political popularity, but also his penchant for spreading lies and his alleged criminal behavior. Mary Trump explained that it was a mistake to treat her uncle like any other normal politician, and outlined the two things that should be front and center in all coverage of the former president moving forward, two things that relate to an ongoing federal investigation.

"I never quite understood why [press outlets] continue to treat Donald Trump as a normal candidate," Mary Trump said. "I think the very first thing that should be said about him when anyone is reporting on anything he's doing is that he is the perpetrator of the 'Big Lie,' which was one of the most egregious attempts to undermine the faith of the American people in free and fair elections."

She continued: "And two, that he incited, planned, and led an insurrection against his own government. Those are the first two things anybody should hear about this man who, unbelievably enough because of our deeply broken system, is being allowed to run for president again."

The points mentioned by Mary Trump during the discussion were Donald Trump's continued claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him by means of widespread voter fraud, a claim that has been widely debunked, and his alleged hand in plotting and fomenting the January 6, 2021, riot on the U.S. Capitol building by his supporters in an attempt to halt the certification of the election.

A House select committee investigating the riot uncovered sufficient evidence to refer criminal charges for the former president to the Department of Justice (DOJ), including obstruction of an official proceeding, conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to make a false statement, and attempts to incite an insurrection. The DOJ's investigation into the matter is being overseen by special counsel Jack Smith. The former president has maintained his innocence in the case, despite the mounting evidence against him and despite his warm treatment of Capitol riot participants.

Newsweek reached out to Donald Trump's press team via email for comment.