USA

The hysterically catty verdict on Hillary Clinton’s ‘figure’ that stylists whisper behind her back… and why so many Democrat women have terrible fashion sense

For a Democratic party now struggling to understand how it can compete with the charisma – and perhaps the policies – of a second Trump administration, the left would do well to convince Michelle Obama to take a deep breath and turn up at a few more public events.

Her absence from President Trump’s inauguration earlier this month meant that the 24.6 million people who tuned in to witness this spectacle looked from Melania’s headlining chic directly on to a drab and completely uninspiring version of Democratic femininity.

America, said the newly inaugurated 47th President on January 20, has entered a new ‘golden age.’ And, indeed, when it came to his family’s inauguration wardrobe choices, that new era might be more accurately described as ‘the gilded age.’

Immaculately coiffed and coutured, the Trump women, led by Melania and her stepdaughter Ivanka, reminded us all just what they’re good at. It was hard to look away.

Melania’s slim-fit silk navy wool coatdress topped with a dramatic boater was at once elegant and mysterious since her eyes were almost entirely obscured by the hat’s sumptuous brim. 

It was an undoubted scene stealer, infusing Trump 2.0’s leading lady with a regal aura that supporting actress Ivanka – clad in a green Dior ‘New Look’ skirt-suit complete with matching fascinator – echoed with seamless precision.

Melania, above all, has mastered the art of performative dressing, combining razor-sharp tailoring with European chic. 

These women had dressed to impress a nation primed for a show. Just as a queen wears a tiara to dazzle, a First Family (at least a Trump one) dons couture to wow. 

Michelle Obama’s absence from President Trump’s inauguration meant that the 24.6 million people who tuned in to witness this spectacle looked from Melania’s headlining chic directly on to a drab and completely uninspiring version of Democratic femininity.

Melania (pictured at the inauguration) in slim-fit silk navy wool coatdress was at once elegant and mysterious her eyes were almost entirely obscured by the hat's brim.

Melania (pictured at the inauguration) in slim-fit silk navy wool coatdress was at once elegant and mysterious her eyes were almost entirely obscured by the hat’s brim.

Ivanka (pictured) clad in a green Dior ‘New Look’ skirt-suit complete with matching fascinator echoed Melania's look with seamless precision.

Ivanka (pictured) clad in a green Dior ‘New Look’ skirt-suit complete with matching fascinator echoed Melania’s look with seamless precision.

It was all the more striking because the one woman who might have given Melania a run for her sartorial money wasn’t there.

A powerhouse in both the Democratic Party and the style stakes, Michelle Obama’s presence would have infused the opposition with a touch of badly needed glamour.

Instead, Kamala Harris sat front and center – a bleak vision of a female empowerment in a black tailored zipper jacket that betrayed not an inch of skin. Literally zipped-up.

Jill Biden, former First Lady, might have opted for color, but her vivid purple Ralph Lauren Collection suit, which folded awkwardly around her torso and which she debuted under a wrap coat, felt as disorganized as her blonde and blow-dried (in haste?) hair.

A distinctly 1990s purse on a chain completed an ensemble that looked as fashion-backward as Melania’s did forward.

Both Kamala and Jill Biden seemed unconcerned with projecting a more appealing or glamourous image of Democratic power.

And yet, as Jill Biden’s custom-made creation attests, these women are by no means dressing cheaply – a wrap coat similar to the one she wore retails for $5,490.

And while much has been made of Melania’s expensive European ensembles, few have commented upon (or even noticed) what is happening on the other side of the fence.

Kamala Harris (pictured at the inauguration) sat front and center – a bleak vision of a female empowerment in a black tailored zipper jacket that betrayed not an inch of skin.

Kamala Harris (pictured at the inauguration) sat front and center – a bleak vision of a female empowerment in a black tailored zipper jacket that betrayed not an inch of skin.

Jill Biden, former First Lady (pictured at the inauguration) opted for color but her purple Ralph Lauren Collection suit, worn under a wrap coat, felt as disorganized as her blonde and blow-dried hair.

Jill Biden, former First Lady (pictured at the inauguration) opted for color but her purple Ralph Lauren Collection suit, worn under a wrap coat, felt as disorganized as her blonde and blow-dried hair.

Take Kamala’s penchant for French-made Chloe power suits (a blazer retails for around $4,000 and trousers for around $1,500).

The custom navy creation that she wore to accept the Democratic presidential nomination in Chicago last August was designed personally by Chloe creative director Chemena Kamali.

Kamala paired the grain de poudre wool suit with a crepe de chine lavaliere blouse featuring tonal stripes.

Yet she failed to dazzle in this just as she had failed to dazzle in the tan version – another bespoke creation by Kamali – when she wore it two nights earlier.

Unlike Melania, who enjoys little patronage from fashion brands and shops mostly from the rack, Kamala had received VIP treatment.

Yet the results were uninspiring and unremarkable, a foreshadowing of the lackluster Democratic campaign that followed.

Instead of embracing the potential of a large clothing budget which she certainly has to project herself as a woman who could be simultaneously intelligent, powerful and stylish (something Michelle was never afraid to do), Kamala hid in designer duds that were as unexciting as they were expensive.

When the time came for her first and only presidential debate in September, Kamala opted for Melania’s staple, Dior, sporting a black single-breasted Bar jacket paired with the brand’s signature matching trouser.

Yet in pairing it with a suffocating silk pussy-bow style blouse, Kamala disrupted the suit’s sharp tailoring and ensured that her decision to showcase Dior – as she discussed middle class struggles – was largely obscured.

Was this canny or just incompetent? Did voters detect something in the clothing of the would-be-first-female president that didn’t satisfy?

Where Michelle who understood the power of style to communicate and embraced it, Kamala’s look was uncertain, ill-defined and uninspiring. But why?

Unlike the hard-to-fit figure of Hillary Clinton (master fitters at Ralph Lauren have struggled with this task for almost two decades now), Kamala could surely have found her footing and used her clothes to express herself. Her choices could have given voters a glimpse of her personality and invoked the authenticity that always eluded her no matter what words came out of her mouth.

It seems that Democratic women have chosen to shun what Melania has used to her advantage: the theatre of the political ring that, in an age of TikTok and Instagram, makes looking good more necessary than ever.

Yet in doing so, they have abandoned a trend that began with – and thrived under – two famous Democratic First Ladies.

Jackie Kennedy certainly understood the potential of a well-honed wardrobe to articulate wider ideas. That is why she chose to remain in her blood-stained pink Oleg Cassini suit as she stepped off the plane at Andrews Air Force Base to bring back the body of her dead husband in 1963.

Unlike the hard-to-fit figure of Hillary Clinton (pictured in June 2024), Kamala could surely have used her clothes to express herself.

Unlike the hard-to-fit figure of Hillary Clinton (pictured in June 2024), Kamala could surely have used her clothes to express herself.

Democratic women have chosen to shun what Melania (pictured at the Liberty Ball) has used to her advantage - the theatre of the political ring.

Democratic women have chosen to shun what Melania (pictured at the Liberty Ball) has used to her advantage – the theatre of the political ring.

Michelle Obama (pictured at the DNC in 2024) mixes high and low-end dressing - think her J. Crew cardigans and H&M dresses – to generate real cultural traction and a sense of authenticity.

Michelle Obama (pictured at the DNC in 2024) mixes high and low-end dressing – think her J. Crew cardigans and H&M dresses – to generate real cultural traction and a sense of authenticity.

Forty years later, Michelle Obama, too, reminded the world of the enormous potential that fashion can have on political success when used correctly.

Michelle can credit her ingenious use of mixing high and low-end dressing – think her J. Crew cardigans and H&M dresses – for generating real cultural traction and a sense of authenticity.

Can it be any surprise that she is now the most popular Democratic figure of all in the view of the American electorate?

Yet, in her absence, the stage is left for Melania, who last week reminded the world that, despite her outsider status, our new First Lady knows better than most the possibilities of a finely tuned wardrobe. And how politics actually works.

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