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The Future of Melania Trump’s Legacy Is, So Far, Dictated by Her Silence
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The Future of Melania Trump’s Legacy Is, So Far, Dictated by Her Silence

Scholars look to Florence Harding and Pat Nixon in considering Melania’s place in history among first ladies.

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Jennifer Taylor
Jun 12, 2024
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East Wing Magazine
East Wing Magazine
The Future of Melania Trump’s Legacy Is, So Far, Dictated by Her Silence
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First Lady Melania Trump looks on as President Donald J. Trump delivers remarks during the 2020 Salute to America event on July 4, 2020, on the South Lawn of the White House. (Official White House Photo by Andrea Hanks)

If past is prologue, it is reasonable to expect that as former First Lady Melania Trump watches her husband, Donald Trump, bide his time until he is formally sentenced in court for his conviction in the hush money trial, her response to the former president’s entanglements will be much the same as it has been: silence.

Some scholars have looked to the recent and distant past of other former first ladies to contemplate Melania Trump’s future, and specifically her legacy.  

It’s important to understand that Melania Trump is not the only first lady to navigate the fallout from the transgressions of her husband. However, her husband’s term in office (2016-2020) was unprecedented in many ways. He was the first president to ever be impeached twice. The first time he was accused…

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