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First lady Melania Trump made a memorable return to the White House Rose Garden Thursday, greeting the crowd with a playful five-word message before an announcement filled with patriotism and horsepower.
“I heard you missed me. Here I am,” Trump said as she took the podium, as the crowd — including President Donald Trump — erupted in laughter.
The first lady stood before a wall of American flags in a crisp sky-blue oversized Michael Kors shirt with the collar popped and vivid red Dior pencil skirt, echoing the patriotic setting. She completed the look with red Manolo Blahnik suede pumps.
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And Trump’s clothes weren’t the only thing turning heads.
Sitting nearby was an IndyCar decked out in red, white and blue and carrying the branding of the first lady’s “BE BEST” and Fostering the Future initiatives.
Trump couldn’t resist giving the machine her own review.
“Look at this incredible race car,” she told the crowd. “Gorgeous and powerful.”
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The car brought horsepower to the White House grounds just days before IndyCar drivers are set to roar through the nation’s capital for the Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C.
Six-time IndyCar Series champion and 2008 Indianapolis 500 winner Scott Dixon joined Trump alongside 2016 Indy 500 winner Alexander Rossi, Graham Rahal and Scott McLaughlin.
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IndyCar President Doug Boles said the cars will blast through the capital at speeds exceeding 180 mph, passing the U.S. Capitol and Washington Monument and racing around the National Mall.
He described the event as a “massive and very fast spectacle” marking America’s 250th birthday.
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For all the speed and spectacle, however, the Rose Garden event centered on a cause dear to the first lady: America’s youth.
Trump announced an expansion of her Fostering the Future initiative, which supports young Americans transitioning out of the foster care system.
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Fox Corporation and IndyCar are each contributing $1 million to establish higher-education scholarships at Indiana University and Purdue University, bringing the total commitment to $2 million.
The two schools expand Fostering the Future’s network to 26 colleges and universities nationwide.
“The greatest investment America can make is not in technology, infrastructure or capital markets. It’s our children,” Trump said.
She also announced that a Fostering the Future scholarship recipient became the program’s first doctor this spring.
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“He will change the lives of so many people,” she said. “Graduates will build new companies, launch new industries and redefine what is possible for all Americans.”
And on an afternoon when a race car sat gleaming in the Rose Garden ahead of a 180-mph dash through Washington, Trump offered a different measure of success.
“Education is the one asset that can never be taken away,” the first lady said. “It is the foundation upon which confidence is built, opportunities created, and the future is invented.”
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Fox News Digital’s Brian Flood contributed to this report.
