Donald and Melania Trump attended a premiere of “Les Misérables” performed by understudies at the Kennedy Center in July, and a photo of the event showing the president awkwardly gripping what appears to be only his wife’s thumb as they exited the venue caused a stir on the social media.
Many speculated that the former First Lady was unwilling to hold her husband’s hand, with some suggesting her body language hinted she wasn’t particularly thrilled to be there. The reason for this, according to some was that Melania appeared visibly uncomfortable due to the protests and heckling directed at Trump during the event.
The “thumb-hold” moment quickly became a subject of ridicule across social platforms, triggering a flood of memes, commentary, and theories about the couple’s relationship.
Netizens were quick to point out that this wasn’t the first time the First Lady to avoid holding her husband’s hand, recalling a 2017 incident when she brushed away Trump’s hand during a visit of Israel. Some brought out a similar moment taking place in 2020 when she appeared to pull away during a debate event.
Melania has addressed these public moments in her 2024 memoir Melania, claiming they were commonly misunderstood and usually had more to do with practical circumstances than relationship issues.
Still, people can’t seem to look away from moments like these, turning every awkward gesture into a meme-worthy headline while following every step of the Trump’s closely and turning even the smallest moment into internet drama.
Following Donald Trump’s return to the White House, there have been plenty of speculations regarding his relationship with Melania, including one about their sleeping schedule. According to White House sources, Donald and Melania are “loners” and their relationship is rather “complicated.”
Allegedly, there were days when the two would spend their days at the White House without seeing each other.
Michael Wolff, the author of the book Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, wrote: “Trump, in fact, found the White House to be vexing and even a little scary.
“He retreated to his own bedroom – the first time since the Kennedy White House that a presidential couple had maintained separate rooms.”
At the time, President Trump dubbed the book “really boring and untruthful.”
However, it wasn’t just Wolff who had presented the claims of the unusual sleeping arrangements.
In a Washington Post feature from 2018, a source disclosed that then-President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump did not share a bedroom.
First lady scholar Annette Dunlap shared with People that the last time couples occupied separate bedrooms in the White House was Patricia and Richard Nixon. Prior to the 1970s, it wasn’t particularly unusual for couples to have separate sleeping arrangements.
“It was kind of a European thing,” Dunlap said at the time. “The idea of sleeping in the same bed together in the late 19th century and into the early 20th century was a symbol of poverty, because you couldn’t afford your own bed or your own bedroom.”
No matter what the truth is, one thing is certain, the Trumps remain endlessly fascinating to the public.
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