Melania Trump is unlike many other previous first ladies. She is the first with English as her second language, the first foreign-born wife of a president in almost two centuries, and a former model who once posed nude in President Trump's jet. Many are calling Melania Trump an "enigma -- a first lady whose opinions, marriage and goals remain a mystery to millions of Americans."
So far, Melania Trump has not done anything with her position as first lady and is "infrequently seen in Washington and [is] costing law enforcement tends of thousands of dollars a day in protection." This lack of initiative and cause on her part is in sharp contrast to former first ladies likeMichelle Obama, who was started anti-obesity campaign, or Laura Bush with her literacy program. People close to Melania Trump, however, believes she "intends to announce a signature initiative in the coming months with a focus on the overall well-being of children," which is encouraging news to hear.
Interestingly, a Gallup poll taken in December said that she was viewed favorably by 54% of Americans, which is much more popular than Donald Trump. Why do you think this is? Some are even praising Melania, arguing that it is impressive that "she has not made huge mistakes in this arena."
What do you think? Is Melania Trump doing well as a first lady, and if not what do you think she should try and do?
Sources:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-says-durbin-totally-misrepresented-comments-205340674.html
7 comments:
I think that Melania is being viewed favorably because she has not started a program (yet) that some people might oppose. By doing nothing, she has not had time to upset people with her actions. Even though she has done some controversial things (such as posing nude in Trump’s plane), she has not supported any policies, and therefore not alienated anyone. Given the things that Trump has done, it is surprising that she has not “made any huge mistakes yet.” However, it does make sense that she is being so careful as she has been involved in controversial events and is not from the United States. Personally, I do not think she is doing well as a first lady as she has not pushed for any new legislation to be passed (even though some say she is working on a program now). I think if she was to enact a program (and she would still want to be 54% favorable) she would need to pass a program that no one would oppose (or less than 50% would oppose), which would be very difficult.
I think it is important to remember that Melania Trump is not an elected official.Just because she is the First Lady does not mean she has an obligation to do anything. At the same time, she does have a lot of visibility, and it sounds to me like, as many other women in her position, she intends to use that visibility to pursue a goal that is meaningful to her. I hope that whatever she does end up doing, she is passionate about it, rather than just doing something random because she "has to". Besides that she should be allowed to live her life. Although I do understand some of the concerns over the cost of her protection, no one should be forced to spend their entire life stuck in the White House.
First of all, I think she's viewed more favorably because she is viewed as attractive. Not to get into the details of this, but there have been numerous psychological studies that attractive people are seen as more intelligent, etc. But I think that her approval rate is a lot higher because she hasn't started any programs and she's clearly not a figure with as polarizing views, perspectives, or statements like Trump. Additionally, just because you're the first lady doesn't mean you should be obligated to take political action, even though lots of first ladies do and should feel compelled to. If she doesn't want to involve herself in politics, then so be it I guess.
I agree with Sam, as much as Melania was aware Trump was running for Presidency, and Michelle, and even Hillary, they may not necessarily have a say in whether or not they approve of this path for their lives for the next 4-8 years. Yes, Melania is in the public eye so she should attempt to be civilized and "proper," but she shouldn't be forced to act like all other first lady's previous to her. She isn't the President and may not have the same goals as other women in her position but hopefully she will start a program soon or advocate for something she believes in.
With such a controversial president for a husband, I understand why Melania would be playing it safe as First Lady. Like many people suggested, she is under no real obligation to get involved, even if slightly, in the political sphere. While it would be nice to see her use her platform and be proactive as a First Lady, Melania is put in a tricky position, seeing as any comment she makes could quickly be judged or seen as hypocritical because of who she is married to. She really does live a mysterious life, and, for all we know, she could have some opinions that are drastically different from that of her husband's. Whether or not she is really trying to develop a program for the well-being of children, I think the public should allow Melania to live her life the way she wants to. Her life shouldn't have to be defined by what she does or doesn't do as a "First Lady," even though it's what the public tends to do.
I agree with many of the comments above that the reasons that Melania is "popular" is because she just hasn't done anything or taken any controversial positions at all. While she is under no obligation to really do anything as First Lady, I think that she could at least advocate, for a mostly noncontroversial issue (e.g. literacy or children's health) as many First Ladies have before. I honestly think this could be better for her in the longterm because it will help differentiate her from Trump: she could go from simply being "Trump's wife" to "Melania" as Michelle Obama (sort of) did. While Melania does not have to be defined by what she does while her husband is in office, I think that both her and the American public could benefit from her doing something while she is First Lady.
I agree with Sam, Melania has no has no obligation to do anything for the U.S. because she was not the one elected. I don't really favor her, I actually feel kind of bad for her to be married to him. But anyways, I don't really like or dislike her because she hasn't done anything yet. I'm sure many Americans still feel indifferent about her. Opinions will shift once she has done something.
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