Melania Trump, the first lady who remains an enigma to Americans

Donald Trump spoke before his supporters in the early hours of this Wednesday, November 6, certain of being re-elected president of the United States, which was confirmed almost three hours later. At his side in recent days was his third wife, Melania Trump, who has been an enigma for citizens due to her quiet personality and the few appearances she has had with the magnate.

“I also want to thank my beautiful wife, Melania, the first lady, who has the best-selling book in the country. Can you believe it?” said the Republican. in front of hundreds of voters.

And although the next first lady published her autobiography on October 8, there are more questions that have arisen around the 54-year-old former model.

The future first lady of the United States, who emigrated from Slovenia and married the then playboy and Manhattan tycoon Donald Trump in 2005, hit the front pages two months ago with her book ‘Melania’.

“As a private person, who has often been the subject of public scrutiny and misrepresentations, I feel a responsibility to clarify the facts,” he declared in one of the black and white clips he posted to promote his autobiography. “I think it’s important to share my perspective, the truth,” he added.

This is how the former model used her 182-page book to express her position in favor of the right to abortion. “A woman’s fundamental right to individual freedom, to her own life, gives her the authority to terminate her pregnancy if she wishes,” she wrote. “Restricting a woman’s right to decide whether to terminate an unwanted pregnancy is the same as denying her control over her own body,” he said. And then he added: “It is a belief that I have carried with me throughout my adult life.”

It contrasts with the opinion of her husband, who boasts that his main victory as president was appointing the Supreme Court justices who eliminated the long-standing national right to abortion, whose amendments were voted on at the time of the US elections. They were approved in several states, although many of them will not be binding and will depend on who controls Congress and the Presidency.

One of the states where abortion was on the ballot was Arizona, which approved an amendment enshrining the right to abortion in the state Constitution, according to media projections. The proposition will create the “fundamental right” to abort until the viability of the fetus, that is, until the 24th week of pregnancy, with exceptions after this period if a doctor decides to protect the life of the mother.

But in Florida the initiative was not approved and therefore a ban on abortion at six weeks remains in force, which was once championed by Governor Ron de Santis.

The book includes numerous photos from his childhood, his life with Donald Trump and his time in the White House, as well as his advertising campaign for Camel cigarettes in 1997.

She also speaks out on the controversy surrounding trans athletes and states that, although she “fully supports the LGBTQIA+ community,” she does not believe that transgender women should be able to participate in women’s sports.

He criticizes actress Rosie O’Donnell – who has a long feud with Trump prior to the political era – for suggesting that her son with the former president, Barron, could be autistic. The incident provoked her “anger” and led her to fight against cyberbullying, an initiative she defended under the slogan “Be Best.”

Melania Trump does not talk about the numerous scandals that have plagued her husband, including several allegations of sexual assault against him, nor that she covered up hush payments to porn film actress Stormy Daniels on the eve of the 2016 elections.

After considering that his experience as an immigrant “opened his eyes to the difficulties faced by all those who wish to become American citizens,” he refers to the scandal caused by the jacket with the printed message “REALLY DON’T CARE, DO OR?” (I don’t care, do you?) that he wore during a trip to the Texas (southern) border to visit immigrant children.

The garment had nothing to do with children, he says. It was directed at “the media” to “let them know that I didn’t care about their opinions of me.”

Katherine Jellison, a professor at Ohio University and an expert on presidential marriages, told AFP that she believes “that tries to cultivate an image of a strong woman, owner of her life and her destiny“Doing so challenges some of the media’s caricatures of her and demolishes the notion that she is under the yoke of her husband,” she added.

According to this researcher, it is the reason why Melania Trump “has not played any role in the 2024 campaign”beyond some fundraising evenings and her participation in her husband’s nomination ceremony as a Republican Party candidate. Although she played an important role on election day and shone in her husband’s speech.

CHIP SOMODEVILLA / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

Melania Trump did not go to court in New York where her husband was convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records to cover up money payments to silence former porn actress Stormy Daniels. Some unusual absences for Americans, accustomed to seeing political couples who exaggerate their complicity, such as the one formed by Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff.

The apparent rift between Melania and Donald Trump has fueled speculation for years about the type of relationship they have. However, in these last two days she has been the protagonist alongside her husband and even spoke to dozens of workers and volunteers gathered at the Republican Party campaign offices in Florida: “I know how hard my husband works.non-stop, thank you for all your support, great work.”

“I think she loves her husband,” Trump himself said in an interview with Fox News in mid-September. “Now that I think about it It’s probably a big surprise to a lot of people, but she loves her husband.“he insisted.