BySarah Smith,North America editor, at the Republican convention in Milwaukee
Donald Trump’s elusive wife Melania has appeared in public for the first time since the former president narrowly missed an assassin’s bullet.
Wearing Republican red she walked, alone, into the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee accompanied by classical music - a marked contrast from the country music anthems and rock ballads we’ve been hearing all week.
Glossy and glamorous, she looked more like she was walking down a catwalk than into a political convention. She seemed as inscrutable and distant as ever.
She joined him on stage after his lengthy acceptance speech, walking to the podium just before balloons rained down on thousands in the crowd. Donald Trump greeted her with a hug and the pair shared a kiss on the cheek.
He then grabbed her hand and walked across the stage as other members of the Trump family joined them.
Ever since her husband was first elected in 2016, Melania Trump has broken all the rules of normal American presidential politics.
In the White House during Trump’s first term, she was a reclusive figure compared to other first ladies, focusing on a narrow set of interests. The US national archives descibes her as having been an “ambassador for kindness” and an advocate for children’s issues.
And since her husband left office, she has refused to be seen by her husband’s side on many occasions when the public would expect her to be present.
She wasn’t there when he had his mugshot taken in Atlanta. She wasn't there in New York when he became the first former president to be convicted of a crime. And she wasn’t there when he officially won his party’s presidential nomination, for the third time, on Monday.
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“Melania does what Melania wants,” said Mary Jordan, who wrote The Art of her Deal, a biography on the former first lady. “She is fiercely independent and won't do something just because other people do it. She doesn’t feel any obligation to do it.”
We are now all accustomed to the fact that she doesn’t turn up at many of Donald Trump’s events, but on Monday, when he walked into the arena here in Milwaukee to a roaring welcome, greeted like a Messiah after his survival of the assassination attempt, her absence felt particularly obvious.
It was certainly noticed by the Republicans gathered here, but that didn’t mean they weren’t excited for her appearance, when it finally came.
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Melania is the most enigmatic first lady in modern history and we rarely hear what she thinks.
An exception was the lengthy statement she released after the shooting targeting her husband, which read as though she may have dictated it directly.
“A monster who recognized my husband as an inhuman political machine attempted to ring out Donald’s passion - his laughter, ingenuity, love of music, and inspiration,” she said.
“The core facets of my husband’s life – his human side – were buried below the political machine. Donald, the generous and caring man who I have been with through the best of times and the worst of times.”
It is traditional at party conventions for the candidate’s spouse to give a speech and tell heavily-scripted anecdotes about family life.
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On Wednesday evening, Usha Vance - the wife of Trump’s newly-minted running mate JD Vance - did just that. She called her husband a “meat and potatoes” man, but - in an apparent sign of his devotion - said he now cooked her Indian vegetarian food.
And while Donald Trump’s oldest son Don Jr, middle son Eric, daughter-in-law Lara and granddaughter Kai have all spoken at this convention, Melania has declined the opportunity to speak. She very clearly does not do anything she does not want to do.
When she did introduce her husband at the 2016 convention when he first ran for president - things went horribly wrong.
She was criticised for plagiarising the speech Michelle Obama gave in 2008 when she introduced her husband Barack at the Democratic convention. Melania's speechwriter later accepted the blame.
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First ladies are always heavily scrutinised for the image they project, the causes they adopt, and the clothes they wear.
But Melania Trump is the first who was previously a professional model. She looks fabulous in photographs and is well aware of the power of her image. By offering so few photo opportunities, she makes each one infinitely more powerful.
“She is very savvy and has cultivated the mystery woman mystique by going underground and then when she does come out, it’s a much bigger deal,” says Ms Jordan.
“She doesn’t appear very often, but she does show up when Donald Trump really needs her.”
After Saturday’s attempt on his life, Melania felt MIA. But on Thursday night, as she slowly walked the stairs to the VIP section, paused at the top and waved to all corners of the arena, she showed her mastery of the power of an image.
Her absence may, at times, be her strength.
Melania Trump
US election 2024
Donald Trump
United States
