Come January, where will Melania Trump live? If she were a normal woman, married to a normal man whose marriage seemed to have even a hint of warmth, the answer would be the White House. With Melania and Donald Trump, the answer is a bit trickier.
Over the summer, Melania began residing in New York City again, where Barron Trump is currently attending NYU. She clearly loves it, as evidenced by this post from August in which she refers to the city as her home.
New York City captivated my heart the moment I arrived, 28 years ago today. This electrifying town isn't just my home; it's a colorful canvas where dreams come alive. New York’s iconic skyline and vibrant culture inspire me every day. pic.twitter.com/0Yd2mdGoH6
— MELANIA TRUMP (@MELANIATRUMP) August 27, 2024
No offense to Washington, D.C., but it is not exactly a “colorful canvas where dreams come alive.” Back in June, Axios speculated that the former First Lady was not likely to return to the White House. “I mean, she clearly hated being in Washington,” Kate Andersen Brower, an author who specializes in the White House and First Ladies, told the outlet.
More recently, several insiders spoke to People about Melania’s plans for her husband’s second term. “If Melania becomes first lady again, of course people expect her to move into the White House and perform appropriate duties,” one source told the magazine. “She will have her private living apartment there, and she has her home in New York, and her home at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach. She will spend time in all of these places.”
When asked if Melania planned to make the White House her home base, the source said that was “not likely.” They added that she will probably spend most of her time in New York to be close to Barron but that she will “attend the White House functions that she is asked to attend just as she always has.” Sounds like she loves the gig.
“She definitely won’t be going back to Washington to live,” another source told People. “She’ll stay between Florida and NYC. This is not what she signed up for.”
“Melania does what she has to do. She will always have a life of her own away from politics,” a third source said. “She grits her teeth, turns her head, and does what she needs to do.”
Seems bleak.
Mary Jordan, the author of The Art of Her Deal: The Untold Story of Melania Trump, has a different take on things. “I think there’s a mistaken notion that she really hated being the First Lady. She really did like a lot of it. She loved meeting foreign leaders. It’s just that she wants to do what she wants to do,” she told Good Morning America on Wednesday. “But she is going to be in the White House; she loves a lot of the pomp and circumstance of it.”
So I guess the answer is: We’ll see! It seems most likely that she’ll stay in New York, though. I guess, on the bright side, this might spare us from four more years of horrifying Christmas decorations.
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