Melania Trump is skipping President Donald Trump’s trip to the Middle East – but the president brought an entourage of female staffers with him.
Following the lead Melania set when she visited Saudi Arabia alongside her husband in 2017, the women of Trumpworld opted not to cover their heads – wearing western-style pantsuits instead.
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles left her silver bob uncovered, and wore a baby blue oversized blazer over a conservative black top, black slacks and pointed black block heels.
She appeared alongside the president at a series of meetings at the Royal Court on Tuesday.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also went with pastels – wearing a shiny mint green pantsuit as she bustled alongside President Donald Trump, Cabinet secretaries, top aides and the White House press at the Royal Court.
Longtime Trump aide Margo Martin, who serves as a special assistant and communications adviser to the president, shared a picture of her look on her Instagram page.
She chose a baby blue pantsuit over a white top – and posed in front of a sign boasting the name of the Saudi capital.
While opting to wear western fashion, all the Trumpworld women adhered to the White House guidance of having their knees and elbows covered – despite braving temps that soared at least as high as 104 degrees on Tuesday.
The fashion norms in Saudi Arabia – especially for western women – have changed in recent years as Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman or ‘MBS’ has taken charge of the country.
President Donald Trump’s female aides wore western clothes on his trip this week to Saudi Arabia, following the lead of how first lady Melania Trump dressed when she visited the kingdom in 2017. Here longtime aide Margo Martin sports a baby blue pantsuit in Riyadh
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt (center) wore a mint green pantsuit during meetings Tuesday at the Royal Court between President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Prince Mohammed bin Salman or ‘MBS’
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles (right) sported a baby blue oversized blazer over a black top and paired the look with black tapered trousers and a black block heel. She walks alongside Reema bint Bandar Al Saud (left), Saudi’s ambassador to the United States
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles (right) sits alongside other top Trump aides (from left, standing) Stephen Cheung, Stephen Miller, Taylor Budowich and (seated) Dan Scavino at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
In 2015, then businessman Donald Trump shamed first lady Michelle Obama for not wearing a headscarf during a trip to Saudi Arabia. Two and a half years later, first lady Melania Trump would also choose not to cover her head when visiting the conservative Arab nation
Trump’s view on what women should wear while visiting the kingdom has also evolved.
In January 2015, then-businessman Donald Trump criticized first lady Michelle Obama for going headscarf-free on a visit to Saudi.
‘Many people are saying it was wonderful that Mrs. Obama refused to wear a scarf in Saudi Arabia, but they were insulted,’ Trump tweeted at the time. ‘We have enuf enemies.’
Republican first lady Laura Bush had also left her hair uncovered during a visit to Saudi during the previous administration.
Six months after the tweet, Trump would officially propel himself into the world of politics – announcing his intentions to run for the White House in 2016.
Once elected, Trump announced that Saudi Arabia would be the first country he would visit – doing so in May of 2017.
All eyes were on Melania and what she might wear – would she take her husband’s advice and don a headscarf or follow in the footsteps of her fellow first ladies and do without?
When she arrived at Joint Base Andrews, the first lady was wearing an edgy bright orange leather skirt, a form-fitting white top and sky-high nude Manolo Blahnik heels.
She did not stay in that outfit when she and the president touched down in Riyadh.
Neither Michelle Obama (left), arriving in Saudi Arabia in January 2015 with President Barack Obama (center left), nor first lady Laura Bush, who visited in kingdom in 2007, wore headscarves
First lady Melania Trump (left) opted not to wear a headscarf when she and President Donald Trump (right) traveled to Saudi Arabia in May 2017. she did cover her elbows and knees with a long belted black dress
First lady Melania Trump (center right) was on hand for the memorable moment in Riyadh when Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi (left), Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud (center) and President Donald Trump (right) put their hands on a glowing orb
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman or ‘MBS’ as he’s called (left) stands alongside Jared Kushner (center) and first daughter Ivanka Trump (right) who also chose not to wear a headscarf during the 2017 visit to Saudi Arabia
First lady Melania Trump (left) speaks with Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz al-Saud (right) at a ceremony at the Saudi Royal Court, where she opted not to wear a headscarf
First daughter Ivanka Trump, a senior adviser to the president during his first term, sported a headscarf when she toured the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates during a tour there in February 2020
Melania Trump stepped off Air Force One at King Khalid International Airport wearing a belted long black dress – covering her elbows and knees – but without a headscarf.
First daughter Ivanka Trump, a White House adviser for her father, also chose not to wear a headscarf during the same trip.
She sported a glittering long black and silver gown during one of the Saudi nighttime events.
A year after the Trump visit, MBS loosened head covering restrictions for the women of the nation.
Women no longer had to wear a hijab and an abaya by law, unless visiting religious sites.
During the 2017 trip to Saudi, Melania Trump didn’t visit a mosque, where the first lady would have needed to cover her head to be culturally appropriate.
Ivanka Trump visited the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi during a trip to the United Arab Emirates in February 2020 and wore a head covering.
It’s likely Trump and his entourage will visit a mosque during the president’s three country trip this week to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.