As the old adage goes, with great power comes great responsibilities. There is no doubt that the position of the President of the United States is no ordinary matter. Being one of the most powerful countries in the world, the position has the power to alter the fate of the entire world’s politics.
The people have minimum expectations about the person who takes up that position and the initiatives that they bring about in uplifting the country and its citizens.
Just like the President of the country, their wife, who is referred to as the First Lady is also expected to meet a set standard in almost every aspect, from their choice of outfit to the causes that they stand for.
While it is quite natural to compare the performance of two presidents, it is also common that people compare the qualities and performances of two First Ladies.
It’s been almost two years since President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden entered the White House and recently, a very serious comparison between the current First Lady Jill Biden and the former First Lady Melania Trump has been going on in popular social media platforms like Twitter.
Before assuming the position of First Lady, Jill Biden had the experience of working in close association with Michelle Obama when she was the first lady.
Jill had been a part of many initiatives from that time and she even carried on and expanded some of the initiatives that she was a part of like the aid offered to military families.
While Jill Biden is praised by people for her active involvement in the politics and total upbringing of society, Melania Trump is praised for her good looks and her luxurious fashion choices, and her extravagant lifestyle.
The comparison of the two FLOTUS even got heated after the 65th edition of the Grammy Awards that took place on February 5, 2023.
The current first lady of the United States Jill Biden along with the former first lady Michelle Obama was invited to the ceremony and Jill even handed out the award for the song of the year.
People raise the fact that during her term as the first lady, Melania has never been invited to the event. People are also bringing up the controversies that she stirred up by wearing a coat that said ‘I don’t care, do you’ to a program that intended to save kids.
Rather than getting into another comparison between the two first ladies, here is everything that you need to know about the current and former first ladies of the United States.
Who Is Jill Biden?
Jill Tracy Biden is the current first lady of the United States and she has been serving in the position from 2021 onwards. Before becoming the first lady in 2021, Jill Biden served as the second lady of the United States when her husband served as the vice president of the United States from 2009 to 2017.
Even though she served as the first lady of the nation, Biden still holds a job as an English professor at Northern Virginia Community College.
She had been at her job since 2009 and is considered to be the first wife of a vice president or president to hold a paying job during the tenure of her husband.
Currently, Jill Biden is an active participant in major undertakings that aims at the upliftment of the citizen like ‘Joining Forces,’ which is an initiative started by then-first lady Michelle Obama and second lady Jill Biden.
Jill Biden – Early Life
Jill Biden is the daughter of Donald Carl Jacobs and Bonny Jean Jacobs. Her father participated in the second World War as a signalman with the United States Army.
After returning from the war, he joined the business school and took up a career in the banking field. Jacobs succeeded in his new career and eventually became the CEO of the Mahwah Savings and Loan Association and later he became the president and the CEO of InterCounty Savings and Loan.
Her mother Bonny Jacobs was a homemaker. The couple had a total of five children and Jill was the oldest of the five sisters. Her parents identified themselves as ‘agnostic realists’ and they did not go to Church but Jill used to visit the Church with her grandmother.
As for her education, Jill Jacob attended the Upper Moreland High School in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania. Jill graduated from high school in 1969. Jill was very much focused on developing a career right from her childhood days.
After her high school education, she joined Brandywine Junior College and decided to study fashion merchandising.
Jill dropped out as the subject was not interesting to her. It was during this time that Jill got married for the first time to a college football player named Bill Stevenson. Later, Jill enrolled at the University of Delaware and became a student at the College of Arts and Science.
Jill met Joe Biden in March 1975. After their relationship which went on for almost two years, Jill and Joe Biden got married on June 17, 1977.
Before getting married to Jill, Joe Biden was also married but his wife Neilia Hunter and their one-year-old daughter passed away in a tragic car accident. Jill Biden took up her job as an English teacher and also earned her master’s degree.
Jill Biden – As Second Lady And First Lady Of The United States
After the presidential election, in January 2009, Jill and Joe Biden moved into Number One Observatory Circle, which is the official residence of the vice president and the second lady in Washington D.C.
Even though her life as the second lady was much more concentrated around her husband and her grandchildren, Jill Biden was also an active part of almost all public service initiatives during the tenure of her husband.
In January 2021 after her husband, Joe Biden was elected as the president of the United States, Jill, and Joe Biden moved to the White House and she became the first lady of the United States.
Jill is highly appreciated for her active participation in different events and policies. She is also praised for her natural nature of compassion and care and her commitment to the citizens.
Who Is Melania Trump?
Melania Trump is the wife of Donald Trump, the 45th president of the United States. She served as the former first lady of the United States from 2017 to 2021 during the tenure of her husband as the president. Originally from Slovenia, Melania used to work as a model for different fashion brands in Europe.
In 1996, she relocated to New York City. Melanin was represented by modeling agencies like Irene Marie Models and Trump Model Management. As Melania was not a United States citizen, she was naturalized to acquire citizenship.
Melania Trump – Early Life
Melania is the daughter of Viktor Knvas and Amalija. Her father used to work at a car and motorcycle dealership and her mother worked at a children’s cloth manufacturer. Their interest in Melania towards fashion started when she was a small kid.
The children’s clothing factory used to conduct fashion shows for the kids of their workers, of which Melania was also a part. She has an older sister, whom she refers to as her ‘longtime confidant.’ Melania also has an elder half-brother from her father’s previous relationship.
Melania attended the Secondary School of Design and Photography in the capital city of Slovenia. After completing her course there, Melania joined the University of Ljubljana where she took up architecture and design.
Melania did not complete the course but dropped out after one year of enrolling. Even though her father was a member of the League of Communists of Slovenia, he secretly baptized his daughters as Catholics.
Melania Trump – Professional Career
As mentioned earlier, Melania Trump was interested in fashion and modeling from a very young age. She started her professional modeling career at the young age of sixteen. It was during this time that she changed her name from Knavs to its German version Knauss.
Melania succeeded very easily in the modeling industry and by the age of eighteen, she was signed by an agency in Milan, Italy. She also became the runner-up in a fashion contest held in Ljubljana, which granted her an international modeling contract.
From there, Melania went on to work with some of the popular fashion houses and modeling agencies in Paris and Milan.
Melania’s career and her life were about to take a drastic change when she met Paolo Zampolli, who is the co-owner of Metropolitan Models. He was also afraid of Donald Trump and it was Zampolli who asked Melania to visit the United States and she eventually came to New York City in 1996.
As a part of her modeling career, Melania has been featured in sexually explicit photo shoots for magazines like Max and the UK edition of GQ magazine.
Her photos raised an array of questions from many people during the presidential election campaign. Melania also had a few business ventures under her name like her Melania Marks Skin Care Collection and Melania Timepieces and Jewelry.
Even though the company and her brand name were listed on her Whitehouse bio on the inauguration day, it was soon removed. The explanation given was that the first lady had no intention of using her position to profit and that she will not do so.
Melania Trump – The Former First Lady of the United States
Melaina met her future husband Donald Trump during a party for the New York Fashion Week in 1998. The couple started dating shortly and they had an on-and-off relationship but they both eventually tied the knot in 2005.
The couple had a son together in 2006, named Barron William Trump. But unlike the previous spouses, Melania Trump was not an inactive participant in the presidential campaign for Donald Trump.
Melania also became the second foreign-born woman in the history of the United States to become the first lady after Louisa Adams.
After becoming the first lady of the United States, Melania stated that her main focus will be to make use of her position to help women and children. She also initiated programs against problems like cyberbullying which was a major problem among young children.
Even though she was part of programs like ‘Be Best Campaign’ which aimed at providing awareness about cyberbullying and other such programs, Melania Trump is often regarded as the least popular presidential candidate spouse through modern polling.
According to the polls conducted by popular media agencies like CNN, SRSS, and Gallup, she ended her career as the least popular first lady ever polled with a final approval rate of 42%.
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Conclusion
While it is only natural to compare two people who have held the same position, the way in which the comparison is carried matters significantly.
While the posts that are shared on social media platforms like Twitter in favor of Jill Biden talks about her role as an active contributor to programs that benefit the citizen, it is difficult to find such a post for Melania Trump other than her ‘Be Best’ campaign.
As Jill Biden has quite the experience in serving the nation more than Melania, she has been a part of numerous such initiatives and is also a person who keeps an active job of teaching too.
Also from the posts that surface, it is evident that Jill Biden has not been a subject of controversies as much as Melania Trump. She had been criticized for her choices of outfits including the coats that read ‘I don’t care do you,’ which she wore to a program that aimed at helping the needy.
While Jill Biden is equally appreciated for her thoughtful involvement in the betterment of the country and her suitable outfit choices according to the event, Melana who was a former model is still praised as the best-looking or best-dressed first lady of the United States by her supporters.
The discussion leaves people wondering. What is one of the major qualities that the first lady must definitely possess? Is it good fashion sense and outfit choices or the ability to balance both looks and the ability to use her position in the best way possible to bring about a positive change?
