Jill Biden is not Melania Trump



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She will not use fashion as a shield against the world. It will not be girded with glamor and will not arm itself with golden European brands. It is certainly not a trophy on a shelf.

As the Democratic Party’s remote convention experiment continued with Day 2 on Tuesday, Dr. Jill Biden made the effort to present her husband, Joseph R. Biden Jr., as the anti-Trump by his character and belief came to a personal end, and played his part in the drama. After all, if he is the presidential alternative, she too is the current first lady.

The first lady is a strange role, as many historians have pointed out: unelected, but also crucial in fleshing out the humanity of a president and the parts of a candidate that resonate with voters. This is why the bride gets a keynote at the convention, and also why traditionally so much attention is paid to what she wears: why, for example, her clothes can end up in a museum, and why the first lady is sometimes treated like the first influencer. (Why, when the time comes for a first man, his clothes will matter too.)

The first spouse is a key part of image creation.

To that end, in his convention segment, Dr. Biden stood in an empty hallway of the school in Wilmington, Del., A nod to her academic achievements and her record as a teacher – a job that aides said she plans to continue in the White House.

She started talking and walked around the high school classroom where she once taught. She spoke about family and loss, the pandemic and parents, and how love – and her husband – can put things back together. To take care of each other as individuals and as a nation. At the end, her husband came out of the wings to give her a kiss and praise. It was a moving scene, in every way.

She wore a picture-green coat-dress, buttoned down the left side, and very little jewelry. Yet despite praise from enthusiastic viewers, which some wanted to know where to find the look, it was, Wednesday morning, remained unclaimed.

It may not seem worth mentioning, but in a world where it has become for public figures to name their designers – see the night’s convention moderator, Tracee Ellis Ross, who thanked Proenza Schouler on Instagram for its burgundy look. And for a woman who spent eight years next to Michelle Obama, whose every outfit sparked a frenzy, it was a meaningful choice.

It wasn’t the most interesting of the night. That honor must go to some of the voters on the roll call, who represented not only the nominating choices of the 57 states and territories, but also a veritable sartorial rainbow. Floral wreaths! A checked shirt! Scrubs! They were all there. And much more.

Still, Dr. Biden’s gaze reinforced the folkloric character that has become part of Biden’s lore and the couple’s relatability, much as her lyrics underscored her husband’s empathy (as the segment on her friends Amtrak has it. done on the first day). And that offered a stark contrast to Melania Trump, who for the past three years disguised herself as the brightest of ambitious designer names and has largely let them speak for her.

In his coat robe, Dr. Biden looked comfortable and snug. She looked like everyone’s teacher: familiar but also a little bossy.

The biographical video montage that preceded the speech and invited viewers into his life had paved the way. She was there: as a young mother, as a partner; in mourning, in joy. There she was, preparing to run… a marathon? Right around the block? Both. She was wearing leggings and an old T-shirt; the uniform of the work from home pandemic.

It created a jolt of recognition: Oh, I know her.



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