Usha & Melania Can't Hide Icy Feelings Toward Each Other In Uncomfortable Photo Op

Usha Vance brought back her most daring look yet when she met with Melania Trump at the National Gallery of Art. The pair came together for the Senate Spouses Luncheon on May 21, where Melania touched on topics such as her hopes and plans for the children of the United States. However, it was the women's awkward poses that became the biggest topic of conversation after the historic event. Ironically, the two have never looked further apart than they did during perhaps the most passive-aggressive photo-op in history on the White House's Instagram page. There's no hand-shaking, hugging, or any traces of warmth between FLOTUS and SLOTUS as they stand together. And although shoulder-to-shoulder, it seems they're making their best effort not to come into physical contact with each other by desperately leaving a small but significant gap between them. 

What makes the image even more uncomfortable is their rigid poses and forced smiles that expose just how unnatural they are around each other. We're pretty sure they're secretly crying for help — you can almost hear them through the picture. And while a few MAGA fans wasted no time gushing over the image, plenty of others noticed the icy vibe the frozen Trump and Vance gave off. "Love how they stand next to each other awkwardly, so humanizing," one user wrote. "I like how they don't even touch. It looks uncomfortable," another poster added. For one commenter, the picture basically confirmed what we all suspected about Trump and Vance all along. "They HATE each other," they said.

Usha Vance and Melania Trump seemingly can't help but give one another the ick, which may explain why they're rarely seen together. When they do co-exist in the same room, it appears that they're more relaxed the further apart they are. For instance, both ladies were shot on Vogue's Instagram taking center stage during the president's 2025 inauguration. However, they were at an arm's length away from each other for the sake of their own comfort. Even when they are touching or shaking hands, they make sure to maintain that same level of distance. However, the First Lady doesn't act this way towards everyone. Her interaction with Vance is a far cry away from the closeness she displayed with Mike Pence's wife, for instance.

During her first run as First Lady, Trump was much more natural around former second lady Karen Pence. Trump and Pence weren't afraid of touching each other back then, and even happily traveled together to support their political causes. At times, Trump seemed more comfortable around Pence than she did with her own husband. The apparent bond between Trump and Pence only further highlights Trump and Vance's possible tension. However, it's easy to see why the two wouldn't get along. Vance's style wildly differs from Trump's as much as it does from other MAGA ladies. About the only major thing they had in common was that they both didn't want their husbands running for political office. However, now we wonder if Vance and Trump were against their spouse's political ambitions partly because they didn't want to run into each other.