Melania Trump is snubbing Jill Biden by skipping a traditional tea with the first lady, the Daily Mail reports.
The once-and-future first lady is reportedly declining the Bidens’ invitation to join Donald Trump when he meets with President Joe Biden at the White House on Wednesday.
CNN confirmed the report, citing sources who explained that she has a scheduling conflict related to her new memoir and that the decision is not yet final. The outlet added that Melania‘s move is a marker of her autonomy as some members of her husband’s team pushed for her to attend.
ADVERTISEMENT
It’s usually customary that, during the visit between the president and president-elect, the first lady hosts her successor for tea in the White House residence. Michelle Obama had tea with Melania after Trump won the 2016 election. But after 2020, when the former president repeatedly denied the election results, Melania did not host the traditional tea.
A spokesperson for the first lady confirmed to the Daily Beast that “the Bidens extended congratulations and a joint invite to the Trumps to meet at the White House,” but did not provide on-the-record comment about Melania’s response. A Trump spokesperson did not respond to The Daily Beast’s request for comment.
The Mail reports that the two women have not spoken since Election Day. Their last known appearance together was at Rosalynn Carter’s funeral nearly a year ago.
Melania, who is known to dislike politics, has been relatively absent from the campaign trail throughout the year, even as her husband has held numerous mega rallies. She has appeared only at a few key moments, hosting fundraisers for the LGBT-focused Log Cabin Republican and silently attending her husband’s speech at the Republican National Convention.
She has spoken out only a handful of times during the campaign, although those instances have ramped up alongside the release of her bestselling memoir. Her posts on X have struck a positive, hopeful tone about America’s future. She also addressed the crowd at Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally last month, where she said America needs its “magic back.”
Despite her more visible role on the campaign trail in recent weeks, this may not be the last White House function she skips. As People reported last week, Melania is likely to split her time between New York, Palm Beach, and Washington, instead of residing full-time at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
