Melania Has Hired a Chief of Staff, but Little Else

Everyone's wondering how she'll make the first lady role her own
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 3, 2017 9:14 AM CST
Melania Has Hired a Chief of Staff, but Little Else
President Trump listens as first lady Melania Trump speaks at one of the inaugural balls on Jan. 20, 2017, in Washington.   (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Melania Trump is holed up in New York City until at least the end of son Barron's school year, already redefining the role of first lady. The New York Times reports on that upended role, and whether Melania will even play much of one at all, noting it was Trump's daughter Ivanka, not his wife, who accompanied him to Dover Air Force Base to honor a US Navy SEAL killed during last weekend's Yemen raid. A first-lady historian tells the Times that Melania is "far behind the curve" in terms of conventional duties, including organizing the tour requests that are already stacking up. People said to be close to Mrs. Trump, though, say she'll eventually increase her presence but is in no rush to do so. Other ruminations about the first lady from around the web:

  • AFP expands on the "low-profile" first lady, with a Connecticut College professor observing that the first lady's agenda has traditionally emerged in March or April of inauguration years.
  • Melania has made one major move: She hired Lindsay Reynolds, a private fundraising organizer, as her chief of staff, per Politico, which calls the first lady's office the "loneliest place in the White House."
  • Despite an Us Weekly report earlier this week that Melania and 10-year-old Barron may never leave New York, an aide to the first lady tells ABC News that Melania (and presumably Barron) will indeed relocate to DC at the beginning of the summer. The rep adds Mrs. Trump takes "the role and responsibilities of the First Lady very seriously."
  • Melania's defamation lawsuit against the Daily Mail was tossed by a Maryland judge because the state court did not have jurisdiction to take on a foreign entity, BuzzFeed reports. Her suit against a blogger continues.
(More Melania Trump stories.)

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