President Trump danced the night away at three inaugural balls
President Donald Trump danced on stage with First Lady Melania Trump at three inaugural balls.
Where’s Melania?
Since Inauguration Day, Jan. 20, 2025, when Melania Trump officially became the first lady of the U.S. (again), she has not made many public appearances.
Her husband, on the other hand, Donald Trump, has been very visible at events outside of the White House in Washington, D.C., since he was sworn in last month as the 47th president. His first term as 45th president of the U.S. and hers as first lady was from 2017 to 2021.
Like before, Donald Trump has spent considerable time at his private club, Mar-a-Lago, his primary residence. Since Jan. 20, he has returned to Florida four times, three of which were to visit his home in Palm Beach. During his first term, Mar-a-Lago earned the nickname the “Southern White House” or “Winter White House” because of the amount of time he has spent there.
Since his second administration started, here’s when Trump has visited his home state of Florida:
- weekend of Jan. 24, 2025: Donald Trump attends House GOP retreat at Trump National Doral Golf Club in Miami. Republicans met over three days to plan how they would squeeze Donald Trump‘s agenda through one of the smallest legislative margins in modern American history.
- weekend of Jan. 31, 2025: Donald Trump returns to Mar-a-Lago.
- weekend of Feb. 7, 2025: Donald Trump hosted a dinner for Senators and their spouses at Mar-a-Lago, then headed to Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, Louisiana, with Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, Eric Trump and other Trump family members.
- weekend of Feb. 14, 2025: Donald Trump arrived at Palm Beach International Airport on Valentine’s Day, two days before his appearance at the 67th annual Daytona 500 in Daytona Beach, Florida. He typically spends Presidents’ Day at Mar-a-Lago, according to Palm Beach Post coverage.
First Lady Melania Trump did not attend Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans with Donald Trump and the extended Trump family, and she did not attend the 67th annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.
During the Inauguration Day events, specifically the week of Jan. 20, 2025, which also was the federal holiday Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Melania Trump attended these events:
- fireworks show with the extended Trump family and friends
- Trump family’s candlelight dinner at the White House
- “eve of Inauguration Day” victory rally
- three inauguration balls
- the swearing-in at the U.S. Capitol
Though she was present for several “Inauguration Day” events, Melania Trump did not post about Inauguration Day festivities on her social networks.
On Inauguration Day, however, the first lady did use her social media presence to promote her best-selling memoir, “Melania.” On X and Instagram, Melania Trump posted a photo of her smiling with her hands in prayer in front of her face. The caption reads: “The official Melania Meme is live! You can buy $Melania now.” The post includes a link to the melaniameme.com site, which is a digital collectible.
What is the Melania Meme? According to the site, “Melania memes are digital collectibles intended to function as an expression of support for and engagement with the values embodied by the symbol MELANIA. and the associated artwork, and are not intended to be, or to be the subject of, an investment opportunity, investment contract, or security of any type. https://melaniameme.com/ is not political and has nothing to do with any political campaign or any political office or governmental agency.”
When does Trump visit Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida?
Typically, the president, first lady Melania Trump and occasionally their only child, Barron Trump, would visit Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on these holidays, according to the Palm Beach Post:
- the Super Bowl for the Trump family’s annual Super Bowl party at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida
- Presidents’ Day
- Easter Sunday
- Mother’s Day
- Thanksgiving
- Christmas
- New Year’s Eve for the Trump family’s annual New Year’s Eve party at Mar-a-Lago
When Trump was inaugurated in January 2017, this was how often he visited Mar-a-Lago, according to Palm Beach Post and Palm Beach Daily News coverage:
- Trump returned to Mar-a-Lago for three weekends in February 2017, including the federal holiday, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
- Trump returned to Mar-a-Lago for two or three weekends in March 2017.
- Trump returned to Mar-a-Lago for two weekends in April 2017.
- Trump returned to Mar-a-Lago for Easter. He did not return here for the summer.
- Trump returned to Mar-a-Lago for Thanksgiving 2017.
- Trump returned to Mar-a-Lago for Christmas 2017 and his New Year’s Eve party on Dec. 31, 2017.
Trump typically didn’t visit his private club from Easter to Thanksgiving during his first term in office, but that may change this time around for his second term in office.
(This story was updated with new information.)
Contributing: Riley Beggin, USA TODAY
Sangalang is a lead digital producer for USA TODAY Network-Florida. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram at @byjensangalang. Support local journalism. Consider subscribing to a Florida newspaper.
