"She also a eschews a 'body person,' a personal aide who typically travels with a president or first lady and acts as an assistant. In an interview in April, the first lady’s chief of staff, Lindsay Reynolds, said Mrs. Trump determined that she didn’t need to fill that role. 'She is so low-maintenance, so efficient, that she does everything herself,' Reynolds said. 'So in the very beginning, I started interviewing people for the role. I said,
Okay I have people for you to meet. And she said,
I don’t need one.' Mrs. Trump is known for taking on the kind of decisions that previous first ladies typically delegated to others. For her first state dinner, she opted not to hire an outside party planner, as is the norm, and chose everything, including the flowers and the table linens, herself, with the help of Rickie Niceta, her social secretary. And she often selects her clothing without assistance, relying less on stylists and personal shoppers than on her own taste. Her spokeswoman, Stephanie Grisham [said last December] that the first lady 'chooses what she likes and what is appropriate for the occasion. She does not worry about her critics.'"
I'm extracting the interesting, pro-Melania factual material at the center of a duly anti-Melania article at The Washington Post,
"Why didn’t someone stop Melania Trump from wearing that jacket? That’s not how this White House works."
That's a great click-bait headline for WaPo readers, who might find the material I've excerpted mind-bending. The top-rated comment fights back against the line that must be the most disturing — "She is so low-maintenance, so efficient, that she does everything herself":
Because she doesn't actually DO anything. I like how they're trying to paint it like she doesn't need as many assistants as previous First Ladies because she's just soooo much harder working and awesome, when in actuality, she doesn't need them because she doesn't do even a fraction of the stuff those other First Ladies did. She exists solely as a prop.
Posts
87 comments:
From what I can see, she poses for as many photos as Michelle Obama and far more than Laura Bush. Is there something else the first lady does? (Obviously, the top-rated commenter doesn't know what he's talking about and made this up so he didn't have to hurt his pretty little head with new ideas.)
I don't see it as a problem that she doesn't do much as her predecessors. She doesn't really represent any particular group. The constituency of foreign born models is not a large one.
Michelle Obama was a role model to millions of people. Laura Bush represented middle America housewives, another enormous constituency. The demands on their time would have been exponentially greater.
Leaves me confused. Is she doing something right or something wrong?
Mrs. Trump is a modern and independent American woman. She thinks for herself. She is a doer. She’s a disrupter and outsider like her husband. And I bet she is having fun too. Certainly she is laughing herself silly with the media’s reaction to her coat. She’s also fearless like Donald.
Boy I do love the fact that Laura and Michelle are now exposed as pampered queens!
I would be interested in the accounting of what each of the 25 or 10 people actually do for their full time job.
I don't think being a role model necessarily requires a lot of assistants. Seems to me the opposite would be true.
Michelle Obama had an aide just to answer the age-old question--tucked or untucked today?
This is how it should be.
None of us should have to pay very much attention to the first lady, nor pay very much money for her to have a staff to make her feel important.
Good for Melania. Who would have guessed a Trump would be the low key first lady?
Damn that woman for being so beautiful, competent and self reliant.
Damn her to hell I say.
Another deployment of the "Trump Derangement Syndrome" tag.
What was it about this sensible, well-reported story was "Derangement"? Was it the top-rated commenter who drew the tag? I think that it was a good point and one that Althouse has never addressed.
When this Melania-jacket story broke, Althouse could do no better than anyone else, remarking about the wearing of the jacket, "I assume..."
So where is the "Derangement" in wondering what it is, that the jacket was supposed to mean, and wondering how the decision came about? It's not like any Trump has offered a clear statement. We've been given differing, conflicting accounts; one from an East Win spokeswoman and another from President Trump.
This was a perfectly good WaPo article, asking good and normal questions. And I actually appreciate Althouse's posting the top-rated comment as it too asks a perfectly good question.
Where in any of this is "Trump Derangement"?
I am going to give this my "Trump Derangement Syndrome Derangement Syndrome" tag.
Tank said...
Damn that woman for being so beautiful, competent and self reliant.
Damn her to hell I say.
And such a heartwarming immigrant story, to boot! An H1B immigrant (although the circumstances of that visa remain hotly disputed), who was then able to bring her immediate family to the U.S. although some people call what they did "chain migration."
Melania's immigration controversy in WaPo.
She's spent most of her life in modeling. Therefore, she has a sense of style learned the hard way - on the job training. She doesn't need dozens of lackeys to tell her how to do something. She follows the adage, do less and enjoy more.
She needs to get with George Conway.
I want to see her in a football jersey for the World Cup.
"She doesn't really represent any particular group."
Except Americans.
Chuck said...
Another deployment of the "Trump Derangement Syndrome" tag.
Althouse has made it her mission in life to prove that the myriad problems of the Trump presidency are not the fault of the president but are in reality caused by angry people who hate Trump. Althouse has taken on a very difficult task, one might argue an impossible one given the president's erratic behavior, and I think we should give her some slack.
I don't think Melania is one Trump's problems.
Tank said...
Damn that woman for being so beautiful, competent and self reliant.
Damn her to hell I say.
And such a heartwarming immigrant story...
How great would it be if all our new immigrants were as beautiful, competent and self reliant as she is. Then we could open the borders !
Bob Boyd said...
I don't think Melania is one Trump's problems.
Maybe she's one of the angry people who hate Trump.
If I ran a news operation, I would not allow comments on news and feature articles. When your hallelujah chorus reaches a certain decibel level, it tends to limit the product's general appeal to a broad audience.
Given its owner, the WaPo need not care, but most of these are businesses that need credibility (theoretically anyway) and eyes on the advertisements that pay the bills.
At the moment, there are three national papers, the New York Times, the Washington Post and the Wall St. Journal. Two of them appear to be staffed by people who talk mostly to each other and then preach to their choirs. You don't have to be a Trump fan (I'm not) to see how they missed the national mood in 2016.
I go back and forth on the news pages of the WSJ. I favor the articles with lots of numbers.
What problems and erratic behavior?
Walk down the street in any city with a Zara and that message is on coats and t shirts, before and after. It’s trendy.
"Maybe she's one of the angry people who hate Trump."
But that would make her a Goodperson. It doesn't work with the narrative.
ARM is doing his best to start a fight. Again.
We’re all so missing being lectured about our diets. Target misses swooning over what Michelle simulated buying and wearing.
Melania can dress herself, thank you.
Michelle Obama was a role model to millions of people. Laura Bush represented middle America housewives, another enormous constituency. The demands on their time would have been exponentially greater.
Thank you for the laugh this morning. I'm picturing the former first ladies telling their staff that they need to block out several hours each day for role modeling.
***
Why isn't Melania a role model for legal immigrants?
Tommy Duncan said...
ARM is doing his best to start a fight. Again.
You are confusing me with buwaya. He's the one promoting a race war. In marked contrast, I have expressed much sympathy for foreign born immigrants, at least this particular one.
I watched the video at the link. What was painted on her sleeve? Was that discussed in the reports about what was painted on the back? It looks to me like it could be "SJW", which would make clearer that the other message was directed to them.
Beloved CommenterA Reasonable Man said:
Michelle Obama was a role model to millions of people. Laura Bush represented middle America housewives, another enormous constituency. The demands on their time would have been exponentially greater.
Oh dear, Michelle was a role model exactly how? The fake garden, planted in sewage? Her many multiples of photo-shopped to the nth degree magazine covers? Her signature issue, the school lunches, was a massive failure even her supporters weaselly admitted. Even more so, considering her own daughters ate much more palatable and non restrictive school lunches at their no -poor voucher kids-allowed- elite school. She was famous for her lavish wardrobe of unattractive and inappropriate clothing, which clearly everyone except the women's magazines saw. Where was her stylist all those years?
Haha, so NOW Laura Bush was the representative of middle American housewives was she? Please. The Bushes were always presented as millionaire elitists by your side when they weren't stupid Texas war mongers.
The myriad problems of the Trump presidency...
The only problems have been the treasonous activities of democrat party members and GOPe cucks furious that Donald Trump is doing what he has promised for 30 years- Standing up for America and her citizens. Melania is absolutely beautiful, classy, intelligent, and completely unspoiled- a stark contrast to the ugly entitled attitude of Her Ugliness Obama. The treatment that this great and patriotic couple have endured so far is a national disgrace.
I have never understood why first ladies needed to "do" anything. We didn't elect them, and most of the previous firsts ladies activities seem rather trite to me. It looks like busy work to me.
I think I respect a first lady who decides to just get on with their life instead of butting into ours! And I think this used to be more the norm.
My love for the Trumps grows stronger and stronger.
Keep it up, Lefty assholes.
My hatred has slipped its bounds as well.
We’re all so missing being lectured about our diets.
IMO, that 'initiative' was a big mistake. People don't like to be scolded - as hard as she tried, she just didn't have the charm to pull it off (almost no one has that much charm) I thought she looked silly with all those White House exercise events.
At least Melania does not believe that being First Lady entitles her ipso facto to become President.
Thank you for the laugh this morning. I'm picturing the former first ladies telling their staff that they need to block out several hours each day for role modeling.
hahahhaha, Marybeth! What a hilarious concept.
Michelle had 3 people just to manage her scowl. It was shift work.
LilyBart said...
IMO, that 'initiative' was a big mistake.
To be fair, vast swathes of the country are currently dying early simply because they are fat and lazy. It is proving very difficult to cure cancer, fat and lazy not so much. She was trying to save and/or improve lives. Hard to complain about that, although many do.
Haters got to hate.
And if she doesn't do anything, it is because people like him excoriate her no matter what she does.
Guess what? She is a wife and a mother. That is her focus. That is important to her. Michelle liked pretending to be a power player.
Laura had all grown kids.
Melania doesn't.
Look, I don't think the jacket is a great idea, and I probably would have freaked out if Michelle Obama wore it. BUT that is mainly because the press LOOOOOOOVED Michelle Obama. The press obviously is hungry for a Trump divorce, and was dreaming of a Trump separation or better yet, a Melania suicide attempt just a few weeks ago. So given that, the "I don't care" jacket was obviously directed at them---- no child or immigrant at the detainment center saw it. So I get her. I get what she did.
Does the press? Does the press realize what they are doing? I think they are doing that thing where they know they are being ugly, but think they are getting away with it.
BCARM: She was trying to save and/or improve lives. Hard to complain about that, although many do.
Perhaps, but we came out the other side of the Obama years with a culture of no fat-shaming, and plus size models in bathing suit commercials on tv.
We hear so much about 'hate speech' today but, in my entire life, I've never heard so much hate speech as I've heard from the left these past two years. Do they ever stop and listen to themselves? Who could hate Melania Trump? These people are vile.
BTW, Bess Truman chose to do her own thing, as well. In fact, she pretty much abandoned the role of First Lady. Her attitude was, Harry, this is your thing, not mine. I didn't ask for this.
MayBee said...
plus size models in bathing suit commercials on tv.
I don't think the Obamas can be fairly blamed for this, as horrific as it is.
hahahahaha, BCARM!
I don't think they can be blamed, I'm just pointing out that it was beyond ineffective. All that money for what? Certainly not so people will stop wanting to be fat.
In which ARM assumes the power to define the word 'fair' and nobody takes ARM seriously.
mock turtle- they aren't speaking hatefully. They are speaking out against haters who shouldn't be able to vote or really even live with themselves. Don't you see the difference? There is one right way, and it is theirs. If people would only see what is obviously right, they wouldn't have to be treated so horribly.
Tiffany is the only Trump lady who is still young enough to wear that coat in public.
We call that hoodie a "Democrat" where I come from. Melanie only wore it in D.C. That's where the message was directed.
Blogger ChucKKK said...
...I am going to give this my "Trump Derangement Syndrome Derangement Syndrome" tag."
No one cares ChucKKK.
Michelle Obama was a role model to millions of people. Laura Bush represented middle America housewives, another enormous constituency. The demands on their time would have been exponentially greater.
Yes, Michelle had all those angry black women to represent although the BLM outfit did a better job.
Laura Bush had to represent all the women who, as a teenaged girl, killed a boyfriend by running a stop sign.
Although it was just "a teeny little stop sign," so it was OK.
Althouse has made it her mission in life to prove that the myriad problems of the Trump presidency are not the fault of the president but are in reality caused by angry people who hate Trump
Pretty easy to do. If Democrats could stop acting crazy for six months they might have taken Congress back but they can't even do that. It is amazing many people, including me, that he can get so much done dragging the Congress along behind him and with the Democrats in full insane clown posse mode.
Incensed at every ripple made in the placid calm of unadulterated hate.
Melania speaks 5 languages. Few people are capable of that and is a sign if a very keen intellect. On top of that, she is gorgeous. The press is no different that high school girls insanely jealous of the quarterback's girlfriend who also excels in the classroom.
Freeman Hunt said...
Incensed at every ripple made in the placid calm of unadulterated hate.
Perfect.
I'm sure Zara is happy with all this publicity. I went online and checked out their clothes. An H and M competitor. I liked the clothes.
Salt Lake City has a Zara but Denver does not. Don't tell anyone in Denver; they aren't nearly as hip as they think they are.
”And she often selects her clothing without assistance,”
Hey, so do I!
The top rated commenter thinks Mrs. Obama merely being black is doing something.
"Why isn't Melania a role model for legal immigrants?"
She is. Of course, had she been a Dem, that would automatically have made her a "role model."
Has there ever been a greater lover of legal immigrants than Trump?
"Don't tell anyone in Denver; they aren't nearly as hip as they think they are."
As an ex-Front Range resident – Denver is desperate, absolutely desperate, not to be thought of as a "cow town", leading to constant overcompensation. "Of course we have to do {X}!... You don't want to be a Cow Town, do you?"
"How great would it be if all our new immigrants were as beautiful, competent and self reliant as she is."
Or more to the point, as legal, documented, and authorized.
Incensed at every ripple made in the placid calm of unadulterated hate.
VERY nicely said, Freeman!
She's mostly a Zsa Zsa effect to me. That is, change the channel.
Funny how Laura Bush is a role model now.
I don't recall her getting that treatment when her husband was president.
You people love wallowing in victimhood. How Un-American.
Michelle Obama has been made into a fashion icon.
Melania...
Amazing proof of the biases by the msm.
Funny how Laura Bush is a role model now.
I don't recall her getting that treatment when her husband was president.
She's a useful tool to attack Trump with.
"Why didn’t someone stop Melania Trump from wearing that jacket?"
Why doesn't someone stop an allegedly serious national paper from publishing moronic trivial gossip columns? (Putting it in the "style" section doesn't make any less moronic or less of a tacky gossip column.)
Angle-Dyne, Angelic Buzzard said...
"Why didn’t someone stop Melania Trump from wearing that jacket?"
Why doesn't someone stop an allegedly serious national paper from publishing moronic trivial gossip columns? (Putting it in the "style" section doesn't make any less moronic or less of a tacky gossip column.)
But we heard it from the President; it wasn't a trivial style choice. It was a serious message, from Melania to the mainstream media that she doesn't respect them.
This is the same problem as the "shithole countries" comment. We got three or four different stories. One was that he never said it at all. Another was that Trump was speaking the truth in a blunt way. Another was that it was a joke, or that it was an affront to Trump insofar as the contents of a private meeting should not have been publicized.
What was it?
Althouse's take; "I assume..."
They still don't get it. The jacket was a parody of the press.
I'm not surprised that Mrs Trump dresses herself. She's a professional Model!
And unlike some other 1st Ladies, she's not political. So, she's not trying to push certain policies. Its says a lot about the hate-filled Left, that they can't stop attacking Trump's Kid or his Wife.
Its astounding that no matter how often the MSM lies about her, various peeps just imagine their telling the truth. She went to visit Hurricane victim and got ON THE PLANE in high heels, and viewed the disaster site in sneakers. So, the MSM Lied that she visited the disaster area in high heels. That's why she wore the jacket.
WaPo has been on a progressive baby hunt since Amazon (i.e. Bezos) was forced to collect sales taxes, thereby establishing legal and market parity with other businesses.
Of course the two last first ladies needed "handlers."
You didn't want Laura Bush to run someone over who pissed her off like her high school boyfriend did.
I don't have to tell you why Michelle needed a handler. They can turn on you in an instant.
Blogger Howard said...
You people love wallowing in victimhood. How Un-American.
Howard, ease up on ARM and the fool. They can't help it.
I am going to give this my "Trump Derangement Syndrome Derangement Syndrome" tag
I can't unwind what this means but it definitely doesn't mean what Chuck wants it to mean.
rehajm said...
I am going to give this my "Trump Derangement Syndrome Derangement Syndrome" tag
I can't unwind what this means but it definitely doesn't mean what Chuck wants it to mean.
What it means, is that Althouse is a bit deranged, in her application of the "Trump Derangement Syndrome" tag. It is revelatory; as Beloved Commenter A Reasonable Man wrote following me: "Althouse has made it her mission in life to prove that the myriad problems of the Trump presidency are not the fault of the president but are in reality caused by angry people who hate Trump."
I am not so sure what Althouse's current mission in life is, but I do know that this is about the tenth time that I have tried to draw attention to the application of the "Trump Derangement Syndrome" tag when the main blog post is generally musing over a perfectly valid question posed by a critic of Trump. I am specifically wondering when a reasonable criticism of Trump becomes, in the mind of Althouse, part of a "Trump Derangement Syndrome."
The late Charles Krauthammer was the writer who coined the term "Bush Derangement Syndrome" during the presidency of 43. Wikipedia nicely picks up from there:
The coinage is traced to Bush derangement syndrome, a phrase coined by Charles Krauthammer in 2003, during the presidency of George W. Bush, and defined by Krauthammer as "the acute onset of paranoia in otherwise normal people in reaction to the policies, the presidency – nay – the very existence of George W. Bush."[1][2][3][4] Krauthammer, a harsh critic of Trump, defines Trump derangement syndrome as describing a Trump-induced "general hysteria" among the chattering classes, producing an "inability to distinguish between legitimate policy differences and... signs of psychic pathology" in the President's behavior.[4]
See Wikipedia for the footnotes.
"Trump Derangement Syndrome Derangement Syndrome (TDSDS)" is the impulsive act of categorizing even the most reasonable criticism of Donald Trump as part of what is otherwise "Trump Derangement Syndrome" as Krauthammer defined it. Lumping together both the reasoned and the hysterical criticism of Trump as the same. Effectively leaving a state of affairs in which all criticism of Trump is somehow viewed as deranged by those afflicted with TDSDS. See, Althouse; Ann.
"Trump Derangement Syndrome Derangement Syndrome (TDSDS)" is the impulsive act of categorizing even the most reasonable criticism of Donald Trump as part of what is otherwise "Trump Derangement Syndrome"
chuck, alone, is to be the judge of "reasonable."
Just hilarious. chuck, you are great kidder.
Thank you, Melania, for saving the country some money.
Why? It was staged. To sow doubt about response to these child invasions. There will be a reckoning. "heaven is over there. Like Iran. "Ask me if I care? The first salvo.Last warning.Unplanned? Never. Too smart. SOF deploying now.Night raids pick up the worst and drop them into the middle of the camps.Ceausescu moments for their elites.
Melania but just escaped fawning.
So she does everything for herself because she is a lazy do-nothing--do I have that commenter's take right?
"....there are three national papers, the New York Times, the Washington Post and the Wall St. Journal...." I'm trying to understand the context of such a comment? All three papers, with the exception of the WSJ, cater largely to the Northeast Corridor. Moreover, even during their heyday, they were only read by the so-called "Elites" of this small geographic.
Melania should have her portrait painted with her holding up the severed heads of black women. Progs love that.
Chuck (6:59am):
"I am going to give this my 'Trump Derangement Syndrome Derangement Syndrome' tag."
Only site-owners and co-owners can add tags to a blog-post. For one brief happy moment, I thought that meant Chuck had started his own site, where we could read his stuff if we like, or skip it entirely, if we don't like - as we all do with Crack Emcee's ideas. It was a real letdown to find that the tag thing was all bullshit, and incoherent bullshit, and he's still here. Not exactly a surprise, but still a letdown.
So Michelle had a staff of 25, and she still looked like a donkey that had run amok in a J Crew most of the time.
Clearly she needed a staff of 50.
Michelle Obama needed a 26th aide, to help her make a better choice of painter for her official portrait. Granted, her husband did even worse, but still ...
Chuck said...
I am going to give this my 'Trump Derangement Syndrome Derangement Syndrome' tag.
The best thing Trump did was unmask these liars.
Bye Chuck. Go cry with George Will and Billy Kristol at the Nobody Cares About You club.
Nobody will ever take you seriously again.
Nobody’s buying that gas bag explanation, Chuck.
"That is, change the channel". Zsa Zsa was Zsa Zsa, certainly not everyone's cup of tea. But she was a force. At least enough of to imprint on someone.
Freeman... dude.
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