As thousands of pro-Trump supporters streamed into Washington, DC, Wednesday headed first to the Ellipse to hear President Donald Trump speak, and then to the United States Capitol to lay siege to the epicenter of American democracy, first lady Melania Trump was doing a photo shoot at the White House.
Professional lighting, the sort used for photography and videography, could be seen through the windows of the White House. "Photos were being taken of rugs and other items in the Executive Residence and the East Wing," a person familiar with the day's activities with the first lady told CNN. Trump -- who, as CNN has reported, has expressed interest in writing a coffee table book about decorative objects she has amassed and had restored in the White House -- was overseeing the photo project, said the source, with her remaining time in the White House
Just blocks away, domestic terrorists were swarming the US Capitol in a riot that her husband had incited earlier that day at the rally. While images of the mob breaking into the Capitol consumed the airwaves, the first lady was focused -- with the White House chief usher, Timothy Harleth -- on getting the shoot completed. Both the media, including CNN, and members of her staff were asking if Trump had plans to tweet a statement of calm, or a call to stop the violence -- something she had done a handful of times months earlier during the protests surrounding the police killing of George Floyd. She did not.
Instead, the first lady was quiet, and has remained so. Her disinterest in addressing the country was indicative of being "checked out," said another White House source, who added, "she just isn't in a place mentally or emotionally anymore where she wants to get involved."
Except with the furniture.
By Wednesday evening, two of her first hires as first lady, chief of staff Stephanie Grisham -- who also served as Trump's closest adviser, speechwriter and spokesperson -- and Anna Cristina "Rickie" Niceta, White House social secretary, had submitted their resignations effective immediately. CNN confirmed both Grisham and Niceta quit their jobs in large part because of Wednesday's events.
Much has been made of the first lady's influence on her husband. But it was Ivanka Trump, the President's daughter, who held an emergency meeting with him in the Oval Office Wednesday, where she urged him to call for the violence to stop.
Still, the first lady and the President, as CNN has reported, have a close relationship, which is sometimes surprising to those who have interpreted salacious stories of Trump's alleged adulterous behavior and their physical distance as a sign of a dislike. The first lady speaks on the phone throughout the day with the President, according to several sources who have witnessed it -- from both wings of the building -- and she is the first one to share with her husband her thoughts on domestic and international issues.
Though the bulk of her public statements in recent months have been related to holiday decorations, on November 8, she tellingly tweeted her support of Trump's baseless fight against the election results. "The American people deserve fair elections," said the first lady. "Every legal - not illegal - vote should be counted. We must protect our democracy with complete transparency." It wasn't a lot, but it was enough to indicate she was on his side.
