The Melania Trump And Jill Biden Feud Explained

It's really no surprise that the Bidens and the Trumps are probably not too fond of each other. After all, per the Associated Press, president-elect Donald Trump has called President Joe Biden "the destroyer of American democracy." And, in turn, Joe has referred to Donald's supporters as "garbage" (via BBC). Still, despite some obvious bad blood between them, Joe and Donald met up for the traditional meeting in the Oval Office between the sitting president and the incoming president. So, why won't First Lady-to-be Melania Trump and First Lady Jill Biden be having the usual first lady meetup before Inauguration Day? It seems that there is a first lady feud afoot.

Despite both acting as first lady, Melania and Jill probably don't think that they have much in common with each other. In reality, though, they both seem perfectly comfortable making it clear when they don't like someone. Melania grasps at any opportunity to throw shady digs at the Obamas, and Jill has seemed to snub Vice President Kamala Harris amidst their rumored feud on more than one occasion. So, it's only natural that these two may not feel the need to play nice with each other for good optics. Interestingly, though, while it would be easy to assume that Jill would be the one to have a problem with Melania under the circumstances, it's Melania who snubbed Jill when she invited her to tea. Now, we're breaking down their whole years-long feud.

After Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election against Vice President Kamala Harris, the pair met at the White House, as is typical for the president and the incoming president. Just as the president traditionally hosts his successor in the oval office, the current first lady typically gives the incoming first lady a tour and a chat over tea. Despite the non-traditional details of this incoming presidency, Donald and Joe still stuck to what is typical when sitting down to talk in the oval office. Jill Biden also reportedly welcomed Donald during the meeting. When it came to meeting with Melania, however, the incoming first lady declined the invitation.

The day of Joe and Donald's meeting, the office of Melania Trump posted a statement to X, formerly known as Twitter. "Mrs. Trump will not be attending today's meeting at the White House. Her husband's return to the Oval Office to commence the transition process is encouraging, and she wishes him great success," it said, adding an oddly passive aggressive sign off, saying, "In this instance, several unnamed sources in the media continue to provide false, misleading, and inaccurate information. Be discerning with your source of news."

Despite Melania Trump's loud and proud dislike for the Obamas, she did accept Michelle Obama's invitation for tea at the White House when Donald Trump first took office back in 2016. So, why didn't she do the same for Jill Biden? Well, a source close to the incoming first lady told the New York Post that she made her decision because Joe Biden gave the FBI permission to raid the Trump's Florida home Mar-a-Lago in 2022. The source said, "She ain't going," adding, "Jill Biden's husband authorized the FBI snooping through her underwear drawer. The Bidens are disgusting." They went on to note, "Jill Biden isn't someone Melania needs to meet." 

Years after the FBI search for classified documents in question, Donald Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social, writing, "that Crooked Joe Biden's DOJ, in their Illegal and UnConstitutional Raid of Mar-a-Lago, AUTHORIZED THE FBI TO USE DEADLY (LETHAL) FORCE," per NBC News. Attorney General Merrick Garland then spoke out against Donald's claim that "deadly force" was authorized, saying, "That allegation is false, and it is extremely dangerous." Evidently, there was plenty of drama surrounding the situation, and in Melania's mind, even years later, this was Jill's fault.

Interestingly, this actually isn't the first time Melania Trump chose to forgo this first lady tradition with Jill Biden. Of course, while Donald Trump won the 2024 election, he lost the election in 2020 to Joe Biden. Since Donald was the sitting president at the time, it was Melania's responsibility to host Jill at the White House. Melania reportedly did not invite Jill to the White House for the "tea and tour." During an interview with Today just before Joe's inauguration in 2021, his and Jill's daughter, Ashley Biden, was asked if Melania had contacted her mom since Joe won the election. "No, I don't think they're doing the traditional protocol, which is unfortunate, but I think we're all OK with it," she said.

At the time, of course, Donald was busy encouraging an insurrection, attempting to overthrow the election, which he insisted had been rigged against him. He also became the first president in 150 years to not attend the incoming president's inauguration. Joe, unsurprisingly, will be opting for decorum over what would surely be some satisfying tit for tat and plans to attend Donald's upcoming inauguration.

There likely wasn't much — if any — direct communication between Melania Trump's initial snub against Jill Biden in 2020 and the next snub in 2024. Yet, Jill did reach out to Melania during what was surely a difficult time in her life to offer support. In July 2024, there was a shooting at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. After the reported assassination attempt against the now-president-elect, Jill contacted Melania. 

Despite the kind gesture, though, Melania explained to Paris Match why she wasn't as appreciative as we might have imagined she'd be. "I do question, however, whether Jill's concern was genuine, as a few days prior she referred to my husband as 'evil' and a 'liar,'" she said, referencing Jill's words while out on the campaign trail for her husband. Not only did this apparently make it difficult for Melania to appreciate Jill reaching out, she even partially blamed her for the shooting. "It was obvious that the onslaught of rhetoric from Democrat leaders and the mainstream media was so deeply embedded in our nation's consciousness it prompted an attempt to assassinate Donald," she said. 

Evidently, Melania Trump has no problem telling the world how she feels about Jill Biden. After being repeatedly snubbed and openly complained about, it would be safe to assume that Jill is not a big Melania fan. Yet, it seems that she has still made attempts to welcome the new first lady. According to a White House statement, during Joe Biden's meeting with Donald Trump after the 2024 election, Jill "gave Mr. Trump a handwritten letter of congratulations for Mrs. Trump, which also expressed her team's readiness to assist with the transition," per USA Today. According to The Washington Post, Jill says of the note "I congratulated her and I offered help."

According to Jill, Melania did not reach out to her in response. Yet, the first ladies saw each other at former President Jimmy Carter's funeral on January 9, and Melania reportedly thanked Jill for her words. Jill and Melania are likely to see each other again soon, since Jill is set to accompany Joe to Donald's inauguration on January 20.