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100 days of Melania Trump. A glimpse at the first lady sitting in the shadow of an “amazing leader”

The role of First Lady does not come with clear instructions and each of them make their own mark, supporting different causes and adopting a more involved or, on the contrary, a  private role at the White House. So far, Melania Trump has been a discreet presence and seems to have a adopted a less political role than her predecessor, Michelle Obama, who sought to tie her own agendas to her husband’s larger legislative goals, notably targeting the epidemic of childhood obesity while the Affordable Care Act was being created.

Melania Trump‘ s first 100 days have been largely characterised by her absence from Washington and the spotlight. She has also made the unprecedented decision to continue to leave at the Trump Tower in New York with her son Baron, instead of moving to the White House with President elect Donald Trump. It’s still unclear when precisely she will make her move to the White House.

The American voters have first been introduced to Melania Trump during the Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. The former model took centre stage for the highest profile-speech she delivered until then. She said that her husband is an ” amazing leader” and that he would never let America down.

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“With all of my heart, I know that he will make a great and lasting difference,” she said. “He will never give up and he will never, never let you down.”

She went on: “Donald is and always has been an amazing leader. Now he will go to work for you.”

However, the moment was overshadowed by controversy than ensued after the mass media revealed that fragments of her speech were plagiarized from Michelle Obama‘s 2008 address to the Democratic National Convention.

A new CNN/ORC poll shows Melania is more popular than her husband with her approval rating shooting up by 16 points since inauguration, from 36 to 52. President Trump’s is at 45 percent.

The by Quinnipiac University Melania Trump’s biggest demographic of supporters is aged 65 and older; she performed the worst among the youngest group, polled at just 25% favourable for those between the ages of 18-34.

The First Lady is also more popular with men, 37% of whom view her favourably, versus 32% of women.

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Moreover, 86% of Republicans have a favourable view of the first lady while only 22% of Democrats feel the same way. In comparison, Michelle Obama’s first year as First Lady which saw her approval rate at 93% by Democrats and 50% by Republicans.

During the 2016 campaign and after her husband’s election, Melania announced what her platform would be: cyber-bullying. Unfortunately, so far the 47-year-old has not taken clear actions regarding this serious issues.

The Slovenian took part to several engagements which have included entertaining the wives of heads of state at the White House and Mar-a-Lago. She’s hosted the spouses of world leaders, including Japanese first lady Akie Abe, Israel’s Sara Netanyahu, China’s Madame Peng Liyuan, Queen Rania of Jordan and Argentine first lady Juliana Awada.

Meeting Queen Rania of Jordan
Photo: Ffacebook.com/FLOTUS

One of the first events Melania Trump attended as a First Lady was the Governor’s Ball, a black-tie social event held in the State Dining Room, presided over an International Women’s Day lunch, an International Women of Courage Awards ceremony, and the annual Easter egg roll for children on the White House lawn, with more than 20,000 guests.

The 47-year-old was by her husband’s side throughout the inaugural festivities; she watched as he gave an address to a joint session of Congress, she joined him to award a Purple Heart at Walter Reed and she spoke in front of Senate and Cabinet spouses at a luncheon organised at the National Gallery of Art.

National Gallery of Art
Photo: Facebook.com/FLOTUS

Melania has visited wounded soldiers in the hospital and wounded women in a domestic abuse shelter and has  spent part of time crafting and working at the Children’s National Health System in Washington.

During the event for International Women’s Day,  the First Lady emphasised the importance of promoting values of equality among the sexes and the  the responsibility women have to help each other achieve success.

“As an immigrant myself, having grown up in a communist society, I know all too well the value and importance of freedom and equal opportunity – ideals which this great nation was founded and has continued to strive towards throughout its history,” Mrs Trump said according to her prepared remarks obtained by CNN.

Trump cited education as a way to prevent gender inequality and pledged her support to help bridge the divide for women.

Melania Trump follows in the steps of Jackie Kennedy

The style of the First Lady has been heavily influenced by two important former predecessors, Jackie Kennedy and Nancy Reagan.

Starting with the day of the inauguration, Melania Trump’s fashion choices have channelled the outfits wore by Jackie Kennedy,  perhaps the biggest style icon to occupy the White House.

Melania Trump stepped out in a powder blue Ralph Lauren outfit that was a throwback to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis’s outfit from her husband’s inauguration in 1961.

Unfortunately for the brand, the historic moment has resulted in social media backlash, and the hashtag #BoycottRalphLauren appearing on Twitter.

Fashion is not the only area that shows that Melania Trump follows in the steps of iconic Kennedy.  Trump revealed she plans to focus on historical preservation at the White House.

In a 1999 New York Times interview, Trump said she would look to Jackie Kennedy and Betty Ford as role models should she ever be first lady.

Asked about what her role would be should she if Donald Trump ever make it to the White House, she responded, “I would be very traditional. Like Betty Ford or Jackie Kennedy.”

first lady melania trump inauguration
Photo: Facebook.com/FLOTUS/

Similar to Kennedy, Melania Trump is a more private person than her outgoing husband, and is protective of their son’s privacy.

Shortly after Donald Trump became president, several fashion designers have pledged no to work with the new first lady. Designer Sophie Theallet was the first one to state she will refuse any opportunity to dress Melania Trump and even asked her fellow fashion designers not to do so.

Two of the fashion industry’s biggest names, Marc Jacobs and Tom Ford have insisted that they won’t be dressing the former model any time soon.

Meanwhile, American designer Tommy Hilfiger said “Melania Trump is a very beautiful woman and any designer should be proud to dress her.”

Social media backlash

When the White House released the official portrait of First Lady Melania Trump alongside a biography and a list of her accomplishments, many took to Twitter to complain about the “heavily airbrushed photo”.

The portrait has drawn comparisons with Nancy Reagan due to the similarity of the outfit.

The heavily photoshoped features of the new First Lady were also criticized on social media.

After the inauguration on January 20th and subsequent Women’s March the next day, the “Free Melania” meme (about the new First Lady) has been floating around social media, as Twitter users noted the various ways President Donald Trump treated his wife.

Alexa Stewart

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