Melania Trump wears 'I really don't care' jacket while boarding a plane to visit migrant children
While most of the ire on the unlawful detention of immigrant children at the borders has been directed at President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump's poor choice of clothing on her way to a detention center in Texas has raised many eyebrows.
She was snapped boarding an Air Force plane at the Joint Base Andrews in Maryland sporting a green, hooded jacket that had 'I really don't care, do U?' sprawled across the back. This left many wondering whether this was an intentional message or just a personal gaffe of incomprehensible magnitude.
Unsurprisingly, comparisons have immediately been drawn to former First Lady Michelle Obama, who, during her time in office, was lauded for her diplomacy and tact, and considered to be a fashion icon. Melania's apparent tone deafness to a delicate situation lies in stark contrast.
The Daily Mail reports that the khaki green jacket design is from Zara and costs $39, but that the 48-year-old had taken it off before she disembarked from the plane upon arrival at McAllen, Texas, where she was scheduled to tour the aforementioned detention center.
Instead, she was seen wearing a cream button-up safari-style jacket. However, the white jeans and Stan Smith sneakers she had worn earlier in the day remained the same, resulting in suggestions that someone had pointed out the insensitivity of the text to her mid-flight and caused her to change up her attire.
The news of the jacket quickly went viral on social media, but her spokesperson, Stephanie Grisham, did not deny that the First Lady had indeed sported the outfit in question. However, she insisted that there was 'no hidden meaning' or an intent to send a message behind the choice.
"It's a jacket," she said. "There was no hidden message. After today's important visit to Texas, I hope the media isn't going to choose to focus on her wardrobe," she added, before then mentioning the high heels incident — Melania was criticized for wearing sky-high heels while leaving the White House to visit the areas affected by Hurricane Harvey this past August.
Grisham then tweeted a statement reinforcing her previous claim, writing: "Today's visit w the children in Texas impacted @flotus greatly. If media would spend their time & energy on her actions & efforts to help kids — rather than speculate & focus on her wardrobe — we could get so much accomplished on behalf of the children. #SheCares #ItsJustAJacket"
The visit was supposedly the First Lady's idea and that she wanted to take a look at the facilities for herself to see how the children were doing. She had struck the right tone in the lead up to Trump issuing the executive order ending the family separation policy as well, issuing a statement that read "Mrs Trump hates to see children separated from their families and hopes both sides of the aisle can come together to achieve successful immigration reform."
However, it is her choice of fashion that has dominated headlines, with the actual visit serving as little more than a footnote in the drama that has followed. That being said, taking into account her history as an immigrant herself — she was born in what is now Slovenia and moved to New York City in 1996, then going on to become a permanent resident in 2001 and a naturalized citizen in 2006 — it is likely that the jacket was just an unfortunate oversight.