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Melania's Right Glove

Lucy Crelli

 

One thing that has always stumped me, even before I studied fashion design in college, is the disconnect between the soap-opera drama that is politics and the wardrobe of the characters. For men, I’ve long accepted that my eyes truly gloss over whatever subtle variety of suit and tie they wear. But for women, every minuscule detail of their appearance is picked over and read into. With public debates especially, I find myself tuning out the discussion and focusing instead on the moderator’s outfit. Is this because men’s clothing is that boring? Or is it because I was taught, consciously and subconsciously, that I should evaluate women based on their appearances and not substance? And if it were both or either of those things, then how does that impact how policy and public opinion is shaped and received?

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The inspiration for this latest musing on political clothing was the 2019 State of the Union. There were several viral moments, most notably Nancy Pelosi’s wry smile and patronizing handclap for Trump, but there were also a few fashion choices to be pondered. For one thing, politicians continue to wear colored ties that are the opposite of their party’s respective colors. Mike Pence wore a blue tie; Mitch McConnell wore a blue pinstriped button down; and Pelosi even wore a blue and red necklace. I understand the reference to the American flag (I will get to her white suit in a moment), but for as mundane a dresser as Pence is, why would he represent the left in his one spot of color? Is this a bipartisan gesture? But if it were, wouldn’t the color of choice be purple? He accessorized with the traditional enamel pin of the American flag, as if we would question his patriotism otherwise.

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Whenever I did spot that pin again, it was in the crowd of attendees and tended to be on the lapel of white men. Perhaps this too will become a practice of the past and we can move on to bigger and better accessories (the same goes for you, pearl stud earrings). The crowd of attendees was also conservatively dressed in the usual blue and black, although I did spot a man wearing an African-printed scarf. However, it was impossible to miss the sheer number of women wearing white suits in a nod to the suffragette movement. When Trump noted that there was a record-breaking amount of women in Congress, it was a beautiful visual when they all stood up in solidarity as a block of white. Their outfits varied widely, but this only underscored the rich variety of women representing us. I applaud the organizers of this wardrobe choice, because it was a striking moment for women that filled me with pride.

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Of the women that refrained from the trend, there were two striking figures. One was Elizabeth Warren, who wore a bright blue suit. I doubt that she didn’t get the memo, so why would she deliberately choose to stand out in this way (especially when the “stand-out choice” is still playing it safe in the political environment)? I could only chalk it up as a move intended to benefit her 2020 campaign, but standing apart from the (largely) Democratic women would not necessarily fit her platform. The other woman who did not wear a white suit was Melania Trump. Now, Melania is a fascinating case study in political dressing. She has a history of speaking provocatively through her wardrobe in ways that could be interpreted widely. Some notable examples: a) when she wore a pink blouse with a “pussy bow” to a debate right after the Access Hollywood tape was leaked; b) when she wore a white suit to the 2018 State of the Union, a year ahead of the Democrats; and c) when she boarded a plane to visit detained migrant children wearing a jacket emblazoned with “I Really Don’t Care, Do U?” on the back.

 

It might be that I empathize with Melania on her botched sugar-daddy operation (I’m sure she was never expecting to end up as the First Lady), but I tend to interpret her choices as a middle finger to her husband. But in truth, they could also read to stand in solidarity with her husband. Sometimes, as in the jacket, it seems like she is simply trying to be a provocateur. This may be the case in her outfit at the 2019 State of the Union, where she wore a military-style navy blue sheath dress, a stark contrast to the white suits below her. That alone could be her partisan message, but she was also only wearing a single leather glove. There was no sign of the second glove, and she only took off her single glove at some point in the middle of the actual address. At first I wondered if she did it for all the hand-shaking she’d have to do, to make it more personable with skin contact. This could still be the case, but one should also consider the fact that the hand she chose to glove was the left hand sporting her wedding ring. There is no chance in hell that anyone going forward will forget her association to Donald, let alone in the House, so perhaps she was simply trying to eliminate just one more reminder of her marriage. And since when has Melania been concerned with seeming personable?

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As for Donald Trump himself, the master of spin and appearances, I have little to say. The jokes about his spray tan and blonde puff of hair are overdone at this point, and his signature hand gestures are only entertaining when performed by an impressionist. He had his requisite red tie (thank you, Trump, for not even bringing up the possibility of bipartisanship by choosing a blue tie) and enamel flag pin, and his black suit seemed to fit him well enough. The only thing that I will comment on was his unconscious choreography during the speech. He was constantly twisting his body left and right, hinging the movement on his elbow and using his other free hand to gesticulate. It seemed like he could never let go of the lectern for fear of losing his audience. It was certainly distracting, but in truth, my attention throughout the speech was mostly focused on Nancy Pelosi shuffling through an endless pile of papers right behind Trump’s head. She knew what she was doing.

 

Never has politics been more about the theatrics than in this moment in time. Then why aren’t politicians following suit with their wardrobes? Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, a subject of fascination for the right, receives so much criticism about her hoop earrings and red lipstick that she now wears it out of rebellion. This is a prime example of the persistent gender divide in the government, but in this case Cortez is actually using the attention to leverage her platform and call attention to double standards. This is how fashion really should be: a starting place for a discussion. Fashion is about so much more than aesthetics. For the federal government, an institution that supposedly prides itself on its substance rather than style, the world of fashion  is an untapped demographic.