We have a new President Elect, and with that the dawn of an incoming First Lady of the United States. The transition from administration to administration was turned into a hot topic before November 8th when it was almost a sure bet that for the first time in the history of our Republic, there wouldn’t be a First Lady. Alas, the pundits, the pollsters, the media, the experts, and the establishment got it wrong. Everyone will learn from the error, recalculate their personal formulas for gauging the outcomes of elections and move forward.
The duties now falling on Mrs. Melania Trump are bountiful and reverent. Encompassing a tremendous responsibility, Melania is going to be representing our Republic to visiting dignitaries, heads of state, Monarchs, Prime Ministers, as well as the helpless, the downtrodden, and the needy. Her role, like previous first ladies, will be to forge their own place in history, their actions and results to be inscribed forever in our nation’s archives.
While not completely independent of their husbands’ position, the first lady no doubt seeks to have her own identity and embrace causes she wishes to enhance, for the better of the country and in many cases, the world itself. Eleanor Roosevelt went so far as to hold news conferences, pen op-eds in national newspapers, advocate for human rights for children and women, and later becoming a delegate to the United Nations.
A personal admission from yours truly, the policies of her husband, Franklin Roosevelt, sit on the opposite side of my own political spectrum. I am a small government Republican, wishing to keep the government in the role which our founders wished. From the Agricultural Adjustment Act to not supporting Great Britain in the beginning of World War II and failing to bomb the train tracks the Nazis used to murder innocent Jews, Gays, and Gypsies was as abhorrent as can be. FDR would have been the target of my daily rants over his poor judgment and devastating presidency.
With that said, Mrs. Roosevelt would never have been the focus of my criticism as I am mature enough to distinguish her bystander role and the President’s executive responsibilities granted to him by the electorate.
It never dawned on me that the American populous could display such a venomous tone towards the nation’s first lady, especially one who has not yet actually taken on any roles of her own besides motherhood and spouse. Like many, she came to our country seeking opportunity, a future, and embraced to our customs, traditions, and laws. She got married and started a family. Ten years later, her son, like the rest of the Trump children seems to be level headed and problem free. We recently found out that Melania would delay her move to the White House so Barron could complete the elementary school he is enrolled in like any other pupil. Naturally, the press made a big stink, with headlines hinting at problems adjusting to the new role. Sadly, a response from the President Elect was needed to squash the press’ irresponsible actions.
Following this, we had to hear the first official “shot” fired by an opinionated French fashion designer who felt the need to have her voice heard. I am a part of this fashion industry that as tolerant as they swear to be, display the most intolerant tactics in their actions. Far be it for me to apologize to Melania on behalf of an ungracious opinion but I feel the need to do so. The left always lobs everyone into groups, whether they are racists, misogynists, or our new label, deplorable. Naturally, they are the most vocal opponents when the same practice is wrongfully exercised on minorities, etc. So this designer, who will not be named in my article, doesn’t want to dress Melania Trump because she feels she should be attached to her husband’s rhetoric and policy proposals. She isn’t going to give her the benefit of the doubt to follow in the footsteps of other first ladies who forged their own paths independent of the administration of their husbands? She went further, asking other designers to join her boycott of such a horrible person.
This designer thinks she is original, but she is not. We saw the same garbage in the last election cycle when the mafia boss at Vogue, Anna Wintour deployed her tentacles of hate towards Ann Romney, urging designers not to dress Mrs. Romney during the campaign. The press towed that party line, attacking her for wearing a $900 blouse on a morning talk show, while keeping silent on the $540 sneakers Michelle Obama wore on the White House lawn. So in the industry of being original and creative, this designer needs to go back to the drawing board and come up with something newer and fresher, though I have always felt that hate and detest clouds judgment and hampers creativity.
Personally, what an honor and privilege it would be to know the First Lady of the United States felt it in her to humble me by wearing my dress designs while meeting world leaders, representing my country. I couldn’t begin to describe the esteem and fulfillment bestowed upon me should that day come. In full disclosure, I am avidly trying to make this dream come true, and would have felt the same sensation had Michelle Obama chose my designs. I don’t have to agree with the President to recognize what an important moment it would be to have some involvement in our nation’s presentations.
I look forward to the day I can say, “That’s my dress, and that’s the first lady bringing it to life!”
Bradley Scott is a fashion designer from New York City.