title: MELANIA SAVES TAXPAYERS A Fortune By Making Shocking Cuts In Number of Aides At White House Compared To Lavish Michelle Obama
text: Melania Trump is embracing a more active and public schedule as first lady   but she still runs one of the leanest East Wing operations in recent history.According to a Fox News analysis of White House personnel reports, Melania Trump has significantly reduced the number of aides on the first lady s office payroll in comparison to her predecessor, Michelle Obama.During then-President Barack Obama s first year in office, 16 people were listed working for Michelle Obama, earning a combined $1.24 million a year.This year, just four people were listed working for Melania Trump as of June. Their salaries totaled $486,700.The details are contained in an annual report the White House sends to Congress showing the names, positions and salaries of all its personnel. Both the Obama and Trump administrations acknowledged several additional staffers beyond those listed in the report with the term  first lady  in their titles. But even counting all those employees   24 for Michelle Obama and nine for the current first lady   Melania Trump s office is relatively small.It s an approach her spokeswoman says is intentional. As with all things that she does, she is being very deliberate in her hiring, focusing on quality over quantity,  communications director Stephanie Grisham said in an email.  It is important to her that the team is a good fit for what she wants to accomplish as first lady, and that everyone works well together. She also wants to be mindful and responsible when it comes to taxpayer money. While the 2009 annual report listed 16 staffers for Michelle Obama, her press secretary said at the time the staff actually included 24 people. A 2009 FactCheck.org story said Obama s 24 aides might have broken records.  FOX News