The reality behind Melania’s choice to ‘snub’ Jill Biden for the White House go to after years of First Lady rivalry

Melania Trump has sensationally chosen to skip meeting with Jill Biden for tea at the White House tomorrow in what will be seen by many as a snub to the current first lady.

As tradition goes, when the outgoing US president hosts the incoming president-elect in the Oval Office, the first lady invites her successor for tea.

But Melania’s decision will not come as a surprise to many who have observed her relationship with Jill since Donald Trump‘s first term as president.

The pair have had a history of frosty relations dating back to the Trumps’ decision not to host the Bidens at the White House after the contentious 2020 race.

Most recently, Melania voiced her distrust of Jill after revealing the first lady had contacted her directly in the wake of the assassination attempt on her husband in July.

Melania questioned whether Jill’s concern was ‘genuine’ as the phone call came just days after she reportedly branded her husband ‘evil’ and a ‘liar’ while campaigning for her husband’s reelection.

And a new report claims the snub is due to Melania’s lingering anger of the FBI raid on her and the former president’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

‘She ain’t going,’ a source told The New York Post. ‘Jill Biden’s husband authorized the FBI snooping through her underwear drawer. The Bidens are disgusting,’ the source told the outlet.

The FBI raided Mar-a-Lago in August 2022 in its probe of Trump’s removal of classified documents from the White House and Melania has spoken out about her displeasure at the way it was handled.

The former first lady, 54, shared a clip to X in September focused on the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution, claiming her rights were violated by the raid.

The amendment states: ‘The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated.’

And on ‘Fox & Friends’ while promoting her book Melania in September she said, ‘Yeah, it made me angry’ and called the raid an ‘invasion of privacy.’

FBI agents rifled through Melania’s wardrobe and reportedly searched one of her son Barron’s rooms.

Melania also blamed Democrats’ inflammatory rhetoric as Biden was seeking reelection for fueling the gunman who shot at her husband at a rally in Pennsylvania, grazing his ear with a sniper bullet.

‘Is it really shocking that all this outrageous violence goes against my husband?,’ she said on Fox News.

‘Especially that we hear the leaders from the opposition party and mainstream media branding him as threat to democracy, calling him vile names,’ she said.

‘They only fueling a toxic atmosphere and all of these people that they wanted to harm – this needs to stop this needs to stop. The country needs to unite and I encourage everybody to read my letter that I wrote on July 14th, again. Because that cannot continue.’

The first ladies’ rivalry, meanwhile, dates back to 2020 when Melania did not invite Jill for the customary tea and tour of the White House.

Their husbands did not meet either with the Trumps flying off to Florida early on January 20, 2021.

Melania and her husband were therefore not present at Biden’s inauguration that took place in Washington later that day. 

Trump had not formally conceded the presidency to Biden at the time after falsey arguing he had won.  

Melania instead posted a seven-minute farewell video on her Twitter account, breaking with the 100-year-long first lady tradition.

‘The past four years have been unforgettable. As Donald and I conclude our time in the White House, I think of all the people I have taken home in my heart and their incredible stories of love, patriotism and determination,’ she said in the video message.

The incoming president and first lady had been expecting an invitation with Biden’s daughter Ashley saying at the time on the Today show: ‘No, I don’t think they’re doing the traditional protocol, which is unfortunate.’ 

The two first ladies also hit the headlines over the so-called ‘Battle of the Jackets’. 

One of Melania’s most memorable fashion statements was when she wore a Zara jacket with the slogan ‘I don’t really care, do u?‘ emblazoned across the back during a visit to see children detained at the US border in June 2018. 

Melania was heavily criticised for the outfit but hit back saying it was merely a ‘style choice’. 

Jill then decided to make a bold contrasting statement on a visit to Cornwall for a G7 summit in June 2021. 

She wore a blazer with the word ‘Love’ on the back in glittering sequins – which many interpreted as a direct response to Melania’s Zara number. 

More recently, Melania gave a bombshell interview with Paris Match in October in which she revealed Jill had contacted her directly to voice concern following the assassination attempt on Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July. 

Melania questioned, however, whether Jill was being ‘genuine’ as the phone call came just days after she reportedly branded her husband ‘evil’ and a ‘liar’.

Trump’s wife said (translated to English): ‘I do not know, however, if her concern was genuine, since, just days before, she had called my husband ‘evil’ and a ‘liar’.’ 

President Biden also posted on X following the shooting: ‘I have been briefed on the shooting at Donald Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania. 

‘I’m grateful to hear that he’s safe and doing well. I’m praying for him and his family and for all those who were at the rally, as we await further information. 

‘Jill and I are grateful to the Secret Service for getting him to safety. There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite as one nation to condemn it.’

Jill and Melania’s approaches to the role of first lady have also often been compared. 

While Melania was heavily criticised for her apparent lack of work during Trump’s presidency, Jill has not shied away from showing how seriously she takes her role. 

In 2021, Jill tweeted a picture of herself in the White House preparing for a meeting. 

Meanwhile, she happily posed for a front cover of Vogue magazine, after Melania was recorded as saying: ‘I don’t give a f*** about Vogue or any magazine. They would never put me on the cover.’ 

Melania and Jill are yet to speak in the aftermath of Kamala Harris’ humiliating defeat, even though their husbands had a cordial phone call, sources confirm.

The last time Jill Biden and Melania Trump would have seen each other would have been at Rosalynn Carter’s funeral in November of last year. All living former first ladies attended.

There have been numerous reports Melania Trump intends to be a part time first lady for her second term and may not even live full time at the White House. She has yet to announce an agenda or any staff hires.

Melania so hated the intense scrutiny she attracted as first lady, she resisted moving into the White House for five months (blaming her son’s education) and frequently didn’t accompany her husband on official duties.

Now sources close to the third Mrs. Trump say that she will remain only semi-attached to the second Trump presidency.

The public expect the first Lady to reside in the White House with the President, but insiders have revealed she is likely to divide her time between her private apartment there, the Trump resort of Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, and their gold-encrusted penthouse apartment in Manhattan.

‘She definitely won’t be going back to Washington to live,’ said a source. ‘She’ll stay between Florida and NYC. This is not what she signed up for.’

And the Big Apple will always be her preferred base. New York has been Melania’s favourite city since she moved to the US from Eastern Europe in 1996, and it now has the added attraction of being the place where Barron goes to university.