I've never met our first lady. I don't know her, though I'd love to interview her one day. I'm guessing most of you don't know her either. But if you were to rely on the mainstream media's reporting, you'd probably draw some unfavorable conclusions.
A quick Google search of her name over the last 48 hours brings up headlines about how she's been "absent" for the last month, how she doesn't want to "play the role of first lady," or how she "keeps to herself." One newspaper even called her "aloof," and the most liberal ones of the liberal like to make assumptions about her marriage to the president.
But here's the thing: These people don't know her either. They're just twisting a few facts in a way that fits their anti-Trump agenda and adding a little speculation for good measure. And if I had to guess, that's exactly why Melania Trump has stopped playing along. That's why she only lets us in on her life on her terms. (If she were a Democrat, she'd be a feminist icon.)
First of all, the Trumps made it very clear that she would be splitting her time during his second term between their home in Florida, the White House, and Trump Tower in New York, where their teenage son Barron is living during his freshman year at NYU. So all of this speculation about her "absence" is nonsense.
Furthermore, she's been busy filming her documentary for Amazon, which is being directed by Brett Ratner. That's been in the works for a while. It's not a secret.
Related: Melania the Movie?
And she is her own person. When other first ladies in recent history — Hillary Clinton particularly comes to mind — do their own thing, whatever it may be, the media is all over it like it's the most amazing thing they've ever witnessed. When Melania does it, she's a weirdo. Quite frankly, I'd rather have one who "keeps to herself" as opposed to one who attempts to lead cabinet meetings. I don't vote for the president's wife.
Admittedly, there is a bit of mystery about her, though I think this documentary, which is slated for a late 2025 release, may help us get to know her a little better. Personally, I think some of that has to do with her Eastern European background, but her husband has chalked this up to confidence, too. "I think part of the beauty is that mystery. She doesn't need to be out there. She has confidence. She has a lot of self-confidence," he said during a 2023 interview with Megyn Kelly. (I think you'd have to if you wanted to survive being in her position.)
As someone who enjoys the pomp and circumstance that often accompanies presidential politics, it's fun to have a more visible first lady. I love seeing and hearing what she's wearing, what she's doing, and what she's saying. But Mrs. Trump tried that the first time around, and she was either ridiculed or overlooked by the media. As a matter of fact, when I was searching for a photo to use for this article, I was met with hundreds of pictures from Trump's first term of Melania spending time with children in various capacities and doing so much that we just never really heard about from the mainstream media.
That's something I've learned while covering her, something many people don't know about her — she's got a soft spot for children, particularly foster children. During an interview on "Fox & Friends" last month, she actually mentioned that she's thinking about bringing back and expanding her "Be Best" initiative, which was aimed at preventing and overcoming cyberbullying. It sort of faltered because many platforms wouldn't support it.
"Imagine what we could do in those years if they will rally behind me and teach the children and protect them about social media and their mental health. It will be an exciting four years. We have a lot to do," she said during the interview. That was just a few weeks ago. She doesn't sound like she plans to be "absent" to me.
As for the speculation on the Trumps' marriage — that's none of my business. That's between them. However, when I see them together, they seem like a normal couple to me, or as normal as you can be in this situation. And while I hesitate to rely on "sources" from a People magazine article, it's said that they have dinner together when possible, but I can only imagine how busy they both are if she's filming a documentary and traveling back and forth between her son and husband, and he's trying to right decades of wrongs in the federal government. I guess we're just used to the previous president and first lady spending a record number of days bumbling about on the beach together as if they have nothing else to do.
Finally, Trump has only been president for a month. And just because he seemingly runs circles around everyone else in the free world, getting things done at a rapid pace, it doesn't mean that everyone else has to. It's not like the first lady has been in hiding. In January, she accompanied the president on a trip to North Carolina and California and met with disaster victims.
Earlier this month, she announced that the White House would reopen for tours, the first of which happened earlier this week, and the president himself just happened to make an appearance. "The first lady worked very hard on making it perfect," he said to the enthusiastic group of visitors.
Trump makes surprise appearance on first White House tour of new administration: ‘First lady worked very hard in making it perfect’ https://t.co/16B0HlKTKN pic.twitter.com/tdrkHmlvGJ
— New York Post (@nypost) February 25, 2025
Mrs. Trump also showed up at the Governor's Dinner at the White House over the weekend. Trump began his remarks at the event by showing his appreciation for her and the work she did as the event host: "Let me begin by expressing our gratitude to the First Lady of the United States for hosting the dinner. She worked very hard on making sure everything was beautiful. She's very good at that. Thank you very much."
It was an honor to host our distinguished governors at the White House. Together, we embraced a moment of unity, forging a path toward a brighter future for all. pic.twitter.com/Fa0Eh72aoM
— First Lady Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) February 24, 2025
President Trump thanks Melania for hosting tonight’s Governors dinner pic.twitter.com/boMRY0S3Ci
— Sara Rose 🇺🇸🌹 (@saras76) February 23, 2025
Melania may very well bring back her "Be Best" initiative and make other public appearances when the time is right. She has four years, after all. I'd love to see her do that and more, but I won't blame her one bit if she keeps a low profile.
Because she can't win. When she plays the role we've all come to expect of the first lady, she's ridiculed and mocked. When she doesn't, it's some kind of contrived scandal. At the end of the day, none of us know her personally, so all of these rumors, assumptions, and speculation need to stop.
And that is the truth about Melania.
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