Melania Trump impassive in the face of a rumor of Donald's infidelity
Melania Trump sacrificed to tradition on Tuesday: like all First Ladies before her, she attended her husband's State of the Union address in Congress, amid rumors of marital problems.
From the platform reserved for her in the Chamber of Representatives' hemicycle, the former Slovenian model, scrutinized by hundreds of pairs of eyes, sent no clear signal about her state of mind, relating to her face the same austere mask as in most of his public performances.
It was her first public appearance since the Wall Street Journal reported on Jan. 12 the presidential campaign payment of $ 130,000 to former pornographic actress Stormy Daniels to keep her from having sex. with Donald Trump in 2006, when he had just married Melania. What the White House has denied.
Ms. Trump's smiles were counted on the fingers of one hand on Tuesday night. The first, the most dazzling, appeared at his entrance, facing the fine ovation launched by parliamentarians and the rest of the public, especially Republicans. Chattering with the 12-year-old "patriot" sitting to his right and the Albuquerque cop to his left also briefly relaxed his expression.
Then the severity of which she is accustomed returned, forcing observers to decipher the slightest of her gestures. Was the creamy white of his pantsuit a nod to the white worn by Democrats defending women against the new president last year? Was the pantsuit itself a reference to Hillary Clinton, who wore just that?
And when the First Lady preferred to applaud while seated during some of the dozens of standing ovations that punctuated the speech, did she want to show moderation in her support for her husband?
Finally, what about the fact that Melania Trump drove to Congress in her own vehicle, instead of the presidential limousine? Officially, it was to do more honor to the special guests of the presidential couple. But it was a break in tradition.
'Focused on his family'
After the accusation of Stormy Daniels, real name Stephanie Clifford, Melania Trump has not publicly displayed herself with her husband to defend him, unlike previous accusations of harassment or sexual assault leveled against him.
Above all, she canceled a trip to Davos, where the US president had to go alone last week.
Instead, Melania Trump took a solo tour of the Holocaust museum in Washington on Thursday, then a round trip Friday to Mar-a-Lago, to Donald Trump's private club, where she visited. at the spa.
The spokesperson for the First Lady, Stephanie Grisham, denounced on Twitter information "salacious and completely false" ... "She is focusing on her family and her role as First Lady", she added .
Stormy Daniels gave her side of the story in an interview with In Touch magazine published only last week but conducted in 2011. According to the Wall Street Journal, she privately confessed to having had sex with Donald Trump in July 2006, on the sidelines of a posh golf tournament near Lake Tahoe, a tourist region straddling California and Nevada. At the time Mr. Trump was married to Melania, and their child Barron had just been born.
The actress was interviewed Tuesday night on ABC's Jimmy Kimmel show following the presidential address, and is scheduled to be interviewed again Thursday on the same channel's morning talk show "The View".
During her appearance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!", Stormy Daniels, who is said to be bound by a confidentiality agreement, did not reveal anything of note, laughing embarrassed and constantly deflecting questions from the host.
"I thought it was a talk show and not a horror movie," she said when Jimmy Kimmel read an excerpt from a 2011 interview with In Touch magazine, which was never published. that recently and would relate to the supposed binding.
