More together than ‘while they were in the White House’: Body language expert says Melania and Donald show a ‘desire to get even closer’ and touch during her first sighting in 10 days at Mar-a-Lago Easter brunch
- A top body language expert revealed that Donald and Melania Trump showed a ‘desire to get even closer’ during Sunday’s Easter brunch
- The meal marked the first time Melania was seen in 10 days, after noticeably skipping Trump’s New York arraignment trip and Mar-a-Lago speech
- Body language pro Judi James told DailyMail.com that the Trumps’ seating arrangement and gestures made them look like a ‘double-act as well as a couple’
A top body language expert revealed that Donald and Melania Trump showed a ‘desire to get even closer’ as they sat side-by-side at Mar-a-Lago Sunday and enjoyed Easter Brunch.
Sunday’s shared meal marked the first time the former first lady was seen with her husband in 10 days, after noticeably skipping the trip to New York last week where he was arraigned and his subsequent speech Tuesday night in Mar-a-Lago’s ballroom.
There were whispers that Melania’s absence indicated the former first couple was experiencing marital troubles – as the former president was indicted on charges related to the 2016 hush-money scheme, involving porn star Stormy Daniels.
Daniels alleged a tryst while the Trumps were married.
But body language expert Judi James told DailyMail.com that ‘this choice of seating suggests closeness and even a desire to touch while they talk and eat.’
‘It makes them look like a double-act as well as a couple, engaged in intense and animated conversation in a way that we rarely saw while they were in the White House,’ she noted.
Melania Trump joined Donald Trump for Easter brunch at Mar-a-Lago Sunday
Former President Donald Trump and Melania received a standing ovation when they came into the ballroom
James acknowledged that the clip of the Trumps at brunch was ‘blurred and speedy’ she said it still gave ‘several important cues and clues about the state of the Trumps’ relationship.’
She pointed to how the Trumps were seated next to one another.
‘Rather than sit at a chilly or impersonal distance or even a non-committal face-to-face, they have chosen to sit side by side at the otherwise empty table,’ she said.
James also observed small gestures Donald and Melania were making.
‘There are signals of a desire to get even closer, too,’ she said. ‘Trump’s right hand is extended in Melania’s direction as he speaks, while Melania leans a long way forward and toward her husband to listen.’
‘She seems to open her mouth in surprise or shock at something he is saying, too, suggesting she is using the kind of active listening and empathetic signals that might flatter him,’ James continued.
But that expression, James said, didn’t indicate a fight.
‘If this were an animated argument between them you might expect the distance between them to grow, rather than shorten,’ she noted.
Melania had not been seen in public since March 30 – the evening it was announced Trump was going to be indicted by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg
Donald and Melania walked into Mar-a-Lago’s ornate ballroom and received a standing ovation from the crowd, videos posted online showed.
The couple’s table was roped off with velvet ties, separating them from the rest of the holiday goers.
Easter brunch is at Mar-a-Lago is a tradition for the couple.
Even during Trump’s presidency they would spend the holiday together at the ‘Southern White House.’
Mar-a-Lago puts on a lavish Easter brunch for its members with a massive buffet that includes oysters, shrimp and champagne.
There’s also an Easter Egg hunt on the club’s grounds for the kids with figures dressed up as the Easter Bunny and other children’s characters.
The former first lady had earlier broken her radio silence online by tweeting a simple ‘Happy Easter!’ message.
For the Easter holiday, she wore a white dress with what appeared to be a flower pattern on its shoulders and down its center. The former president sported a pink tie with his dark suit.
Their table had pink and orange tulips on it. Mar-a-Lago was decorated for the holiday with paper mache bunnies and pink roses.
Donald Trump appeared to have worked the ballroom. Several users on social media posted selfies with the former president.
But the sighting of Melania, 52, was remarkable after she was careful to stay away during the most public parts of Donald Trump’s indictment.
James pointed out that these moments were happening in the semi-private.
While guests could see the Trumps interact, reporters were not in the room.
She said ‘this unofficial glimpse seems to suggest the ex POTUS AND FLOTUS might actually still be a very firm double-act behind the scenes.’
Still, Melania did not join the former president in New York last week when he turned himself over to authorities and pleaded not guilty to 34 felony charges.
Nor was she at his rally at Mar-a-Lago in the aftermath when the former president gave a speech that included a special shoutout to all of his children – but made no mention of his wife.
Her father Viktor Knavs was present for speech, sandwiched between the former president’s two eldest sons, while the former first lady was mysteriously absent. It He was in a prominent position in the front row that put him directly in the eye of the cameras.
Instead she’s been captured by users of social media, who post and tag when they see the Trumps at Mar-a-Lago, which doubles as a private club in addition to the couple’s Florida residence.
On the night the indictment was announced, Melania was by Donald Trump’s side in a very public show of strength that was captured by social media users.
The couple dined together with friends at their usual, highly-visible table, at Mar-a-Lago.
The former first lady wore a bright red dress, making her easy to spot by his side.
Melania and Donald Trump ate Easter brunch alone together at their table
It remains unclear why she skipped his speech, but sources previously told DailyMail.com she is hurt and angry about the allegations that Trump had an affair with Daniels.
The former first lady faces up to a year and a half of having her dirty laundry aired out in public as the New York criminal case drags on.
Those who know her well now say that she is choosing to stay out of the spotlight to protect herself from the news of her husband’s infidelity.
Before the indictment was announced last week, a source told PEOPLE that Melania ‘is leading her own life’ and ‘still feels happy’ at Mar-a-Lago, but ‘remains angry and doesn’t want to hear’ about the alleged $130,000 in hush money to Daniels.
Lauren Wright, a political scientist at Princeton University, also told DailyMail.com she is ‘not surprised Melania was nowhere to be found at her husband’s post-indictment speech.
‘Throughout Trump’s presidency, when the Stormy Daniels issue came up, Melania would assert her independence in one way or another, either avoiding the topic or, most famously, contradicting those who claimed to know her feelings about the alleged extramarital dalliance,’ she noted.
And Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, a former aide and friend, said she believes that Melania’s recent silence and disappearance from the scene is deliberate.
‘It’s her weapon of choice and her protective armor,’ she says.
In contrast, Donald Trump has been out and about. He was greeted with huge cheers in Miami Saturday night as he took his seat in the front row of UFC 287 alongside organization president Dana White.
He joined other celebrities including Kid Rock and Mike Tyson to watch not only the main event between Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira, but also the battle between MAGA supporter Jorge Masvidal and Gilbert Burns. Melania Trump was not present for that event.
The Mar-a-Lago resort hosted an Easter brunch with activities for kids
Some of the holiday decorations at Mar-a-Lago
Melania, 52, had noticeably not followed her husband to New York City last week when he turned himself over to authorities and pleaded not guilty to 34 felony charges. The couple are pictured here in 2017
Melania had previously gone missing in action in January 2018, days after Trump’s alleged affair with Stormy Daniels was outed by the Wall Street Journal.
Daniels was paid just before the 2016 election to keep quiet about an affair that she said she had had a decade earlier with Donald Trump — when the Trumps were newlyweds and soon after Melania had given birth to their son Barron, the report said.
Then-President Trump promptly denied everything.
At the time, Melania Trump, then the first lady, canceled her plans to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos with Trump.
She had been scheduled to go.
Instead she visited Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C. with her mother and then flew to Mar-a-Lago, taking time to enjoy herself in the on-site spa.
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