Melania Trump was very quiet in first months of the second term of Donald Trump, however, she recently made more appearances out in the world.
And it was not Trump who took the centre-stage at the recent White House Picnic, but it was the First Lady.
First Lady Melania Trump was back in the limelight on June 12, as she joined the audiences in the 2025 Congressional Picnic, less than two months after springing back in the headlines with summer approaching right behind her back. The wife of President Trump went out of her way to appear to many people as she has made some of the few appearances this year.
The ex-model who is 55 years old appeared on the South Lawn during the yearly event and was greeted by her husband with the statement:
I would like to thank our beautiful First Lady in organizing this wonderful night.
Melania is usually secretive and determined to protect the privacy of her son Barron, but in this shot she was caught smiling in a clean white blouse paired with bright floral pants as she chatted to guests.
Melania welcomed the guests in a pink pair of Manolo Blahnik suede pumps and a pair of floral cotton jacquard trousers by Dolce and Gabbana according to the report by USA Today, a classic summer outfit that is easy to wear.
She was also pictured later the same day talking to others – and the shots were immediately circulated on the internet and became the subject of a heated social media discussion.
Her new look on the internet had caused some internet users to rave over her fresh looks with some writing: Melania is 100% Class! Trump and Melania are an ideal couple and all the lovebirds need to follow em. A second one added, “Tonight was probably the best I have ever seen Melania dressed.” Rock and roll was tight. Her Dress was simple and elegant. As usual, smiling. 10/10.”
Not all were however as praising.
After the photos of the event had been posted on social media, the term, Is That Bruce Jenner? became a trending phrase. The social media was overwhelmed with critics who said that Melania had an uncanny new look that was a replica of Caitlyn Jenner, formerly Bruce. One of the Facebook users noted, joking about it the first time, that he/she could see Caitlyn Jenner.
This is not the first time that comparison has appeared in the headline of the newspapers.
One of the accounts on Instagram re-posted old pictures of Caitlyn who has already came out after conducting the transition operations and compared them with pictures of Melania to which the articles mentioned such comments as, “Melania and Bruce Jenner have a striking resemblance”, and, “They do look like. How weird. Melania always looked to me….husky. Not feminine or pussy and definitely not sweet. She is masculine looking and facial features are not different. It’s true.”
Other people however refuted such a claim strongly. One of the comments was simple, direct and straight to the point as it stated, “Melania does NOTHING look like Bruce Jenner!” whereas another comment was poignant when it came out saying, Oh p***off.”
The president, in his turn, kept on flattering her, not only over her beauty, but also over her late-time activity in legislation.
Trump mentioned her participation in the Take It Down Act; a bill aimed at eliminating explicit content that is posted on the internet without permission during his speech: I want to thank you Melania and everybody out there. When I realized that bill was getting passed bipartisan, I said ‘You know, I think you are going to take my job.’
Choices of outfit always put Melania Trump under the spotlight and this situation, without stopping, only generates debate on the internet as people feel that her dressing habit gives her a subtle message about her inner feelings. According to what WomenWear Daily once pointed out, her style changed radically as soon as she became First Lady as she changed her high-glamour outfits that were model-ready to more conservative and reticent styles.
Since 2016, she has appeared regularly in Ralph Lauren, Valentino and Burberry.
On the campaign trail running in 2024, Trump has adopted names such as Michael Kors and Dior, though her attire remains the subject of division.
Although Melania Trump indeed knows how to combine the latest luxury fashion with a suitable low-end accessory, the ensemble that she wore during the recent swearing-in surprised everyone. Clad in a sleek black dress with now-viral large-brim hat the outfit was a dramatic contrast to the soft, Jackie Kennedy-style soft powder blue outfit she had on at Donald Trump first inauguration back in 2017.
Gwendolyn DuBois Shaw is a professor and Chair of the History of Art at the University of Pennsylvania who examined the image saying:
She is standing squarely behind that ultra shiny table, placing a little bit of a distance between herself and the onlooker as Melania puts it.
A spectator shared the same criticism: I am guessing she does not have the inner soft side. When she does, she does not show it. It is a pity she did not.”