Melania Trump Isn't A Victim
Politics

On Sunday, First Lady Melania Trump carefully disembarked Air Force One, clutching the railing of the stairs leading to the tarmac with one hand and a brown Birkin bag in the other. A gust of wind blew her hair into her face and threatened to lift her dress too if she wasn’t careful, so she jerkily readjusted herself, pressing the weight of the bag against the skirt of her dress as she continued her descent. The problem, though, was that Donald Trump attempted to hold Melania’s hand just as she was avoiding a wardrobe malfunction, so it appeared as though she was brushing off his attempts at affection.
That, at least, is how I saw the video that instantly went viral. Plenty of other people saw something a little more dramatic: Melania unable to control her absolute repulsion for her husband with her very tall son in tow.
While there’s some fun to be had in the concept of a perpetually disdainful Melania Trump, it’s not one that seems all that tethered to reality. But that didn’t stop Sky News from blaring the headline “Melania Trump pulls her hand away from Donald Trump’s as they step off Air Force One.” Nor did it stop Vox journalist Aaron Rupar either, who tweeted, “Hard not to notice Trump repeatedly trying to hold Melania’s hand on their way down the steps and her having none of it.” It also didn’t stop a few Democrats with a large following on Twitter from crassly joking that Melania, a sex worker, charges extra for hand-holding.