Melania Trump also breaks a tradition in this unprecedented change of hands in the White House
The wife of the outgoing president did not invite future first lady Jill Biden to tour the mansion. It was a custom since 1945.
Amid a climate of tension for fear of violent incidents and in an atypical ceremony, in which the outgoing president is expected to leave Washington before the arrival of his successor, the first lady of the United States, Melania Trump also breaks a tradition in this unprecedented transfer of command.
Donald Trump's wife did not invite future first lady Jill Biden to take a private tour of the White House before the transfer of command, local media revealed on Tuesday.
"Melania Trump will become the first modern first lady not to invite the woman who will replace her in the White House to take a tour of the private rooms on the second and third floors," said an article released by CNN.
The version indicated that this breaks with a tradition that dates back to the meeting between Bess Truman, the wife of Harry S. Truman (1945-1953) and Mamie Eisenhower, wife of Dwight David Eisenhower (1953-1961), and that continued Laura Bush, whose daughters, Jenna and Barbara Bush, showed Sasha and Malia Obama "how to slide down the railing of the residence."
Michelle Obama also invited Melania Trump, following to the letter what is considered an unwritten tradition among the first ladies.
"It is perhaps not surprising that Melania Trump has flouted a social norm of her position. Every term president - and his wife - has felt the sting of defeat, but unlike her husband, none of them have refused to accept the election results, "Kate Andersen Brower, author of three books on the ins and outs of the White House, said in an opinion column.
Brower mentions that although Betty Ford was furious when her husband, Gerald Ford, lost the Presidency in 1976, she welcomed her successor, Rosalynn Carter, but not before having canceled two previous attempts to reunite.
On the other hand, the author highlights the transition from the Bushes to the Obamas as one of the "smoothest in modern history."
Laura Bush, as outgoing first lady, invited Michelle Obama to the White House twice: once alone and once with her daughters.
George W. Bush's wife (2001-2009) included as the first stop on the tour at the presidential residence the rooms that she considered would like most to Sasha and Malia, who were then 7 and 10 years old, according to the article.
Source: Biden's inauguration ceremony is expected to be attended by former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama, who, along with their wives, will later accompany President-elect Joe Biden to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
