Donald Trump’s wife, Melania, took centre stage on the first day of the Republican National Convention but faced accusations that a portion of her speech plagiarised Michelle Obama.
Her speech, which brought the convention to its feet, had themes of inclusivity, honesty and hard work.
Commentators noticed similarities with Mrs Obama’s 2008 convention speech.
But Mr Trump’s team said Mrs Trump used “common words” and blamed Hillary Clinton for the row.
“There’s no cribbing of Michelle Obama’s speech,” said Paul Manafort, Mr Trump’s campaign manager.
“I mean, this is, once again, an example of when a woman threatens Hillary Clinton, how she seeks out to demean her and take her down,’’ he added.