Melania Trump‘s show-stealing moves at Donald Trump’s inauguration reveal her plan to step out of her husband’s shadow once and for all.
The Slovenian-born former model who is married to President Donald Trump previously took a back seat during his first term in office. But four years later, the 54-year-old is finally ready to cement her status in power and has several ways to define her position in global politics.
Over the next four years, Melania will put her name to charitable causes as well as campaigning for causes close to her heart. Despite her husband’s views on abortions, Melania has made her position very clear – stating that women should be in charge of making decisions about their bodies. But while she was catapulted onto the global stage thanks to her husband turning his back on reality telly in favour of politics, Melania had success before meeting Donald, which will be explored in an “unprecedented” documentary.
At 16, she was discovered by Slovenian photographer, Stane Jerko. She later won a modelling contract with Italian studio, Cinecittà – but she turned down a movie role that came with the victory. Aged 26, she moved to New York following advice from Paolo Zampollio, a friend of Trump’s. During her first term, Melania remained extremely private and her staff had allegedly been instructed not to discuss her whereabouts at all. She was portrayed as a reluctant companion to her husband. But during Donald’s first time in office, Melania remained at Trump Tower in New York, while he resided in the White House. This led to a rather confusing #FreeMelania campaign on social media following claims he had cheated on his wife.
But instead of shutting down the speculation, Melania found it amusing, despite initially being annoyed that people viewed her as “hapless”. Now, eight years after she first walked through the doors of the White House, replacing Michelle Obama, Melania has undergone a complete transformation from the “shy sphynx-like, nervous” wife to a “confident, perchma-beaming star of the show.” During Trump’s inauguration on January 21, Melanie ensured all eyes were on her as she supported her husband – wearing a rather eye-catching outfit.
“Back then her only smiles were lightning smiles that flashed across her face when her husband glanced at her,” leading body language Judi James exclusively told the Mirror of Melania’s first term. She added: “Which he did not do very often and vanished again with breath-taking speed to be replaced by an expression of utter misery.
“Melania was upstaged and even pushed to the back rows by Ivanka in 2017, who took the space by her father’s side that was normally preserved for the First Lady. Melania had no voice and the couple’s PDAs were rare and clumsy. Over the first four years in the White House though, Melania was gradually viewed as an asset. She power-dressed and she gave good speeches as well as providing the elegance that Trump himself lacked. There was still speculation that she’d fly off into a solo future once Trump lost the election but those rumours were untrue and she’s back with a vengeance now, having found her own voice by writing a book, giving some assertive interviews and having the perfect wing-man in her towering, charismatic son Barron.”
Judi went on to add: “Trump spent much of this inauguration clutching his wife’s hand or taking it like some Regency gentleman, kissing her proffered cheek or even gazing at her as they danced together like a man in the throes of some romantic thrall.” It appears that her outfit also had a key part in defining her status as First Lady of the United States.
Judi commented: “Her saucer- shaped hat and her fiercely-tailored coat twinned her as an equal to Trump and a woman who means business this time around. Beneath the brim her smile was regal and confident, while her eyes were kept hidden. During tricky social moments, like when they were seeing the Biden’s off after Trump’s flame-thrower of a speech, Melania seemed to make her own feelings very clear when Biden placed an arm around her waist for a full ten seconds and she turned away towards her husband with one elbow splayed as she held onto her hat brim. As Trump leaned in to shake hands with Biden she placed her own arm around Trump’s waist for several seconds and patted him in a gesture of reward and reassurance.”
During the inauguration which took place indoors for the first time in decades due to cold weather, Trump made a string of speeches both at The Capitol and also at a nearby arena which was packed by 20,000 Make America Great Again supporters who had queued for hours to catch a glimpse at their controversial president.
“In Trump’s second speech he alluded to the fact that his first one had only been delivered with a tempered, calm, low-key tone because Melania had insisted, and she was totally right,” added Judi. She went on to say: “His second speech might have been authentic Trump with its humour and spontaneous shocks (He told that audience they were younger and more beautiful than the ones in the other chamber) but it was also off-script rambling and much less presidential.
“In her interview for her book Melania said she has ‘My own Yes and No’s’ and that steering and firmness is now more obvious in her body language. When she arrived on stage at the ball it was her waving to the crowd to acknowledge the rock-star screaming and cheers, showing she now knows her place and her worth. Trump is not a sharer in terms of the spotlight but he now looks delighted to show himself as part of a team with his wife.”
Having observed Melania at the inauguration, Judi explained: “Melania’s status and power signals have increased and she now looks as though she wants to be there as a fully-formed First Lady Of The United States, rather than the Cinderella-style figure she presented as last time around.”
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