# Is Melania Trump trolling everyone, is so why? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [October 11, 2016, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198 "2016-10-11T00:01:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/1 "2016-10-11T00:01:49Z")
She gave a speech that was partly plagiarized and had a rick-roll in it at the RNC convention. Then she shows up for the 2nd debate wearing a pussy bow blouse a couple days after a tape is released where her husband says ‘grab her by the pussy’. I’m starting to think Melania is way smarter than anyone realizes. Maybe she knows her husband is a delusional narcissist, she just puts up with it because he is rich, and she is subtly signaling at the absurdity of everything. I also wouldn’t be surprised if she actually takes the lead in their relationship, but plays on Donald’s ego to make him think he is the alpha male. Basically far from just being a trophy wife, she is far wiser than anyone expects and has a level of social competence far beyond her husband. Is this election material? ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/2 "2016-10-11T00:12:34Z")
I had never (until googling just now) heard the term “pussy bow blouse.” Is it a common name that most people know? ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/3 "2016-10-11T00:13:32Z")
Granted, I don’t know a whole bunch about fashion, but uh … _pussy bow blouse_? I’m intrigued by these ideas and I’d like to subscribe to your newsletter, and I can prove I’m over 18 and have a credit card number. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/4 "2016-10-11T00:27:53Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > I had never (until googling just now) heard the term “pussy bow blouse.” Is it a common name that most people know? I’ve never heard it either. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/5 "2016-10-11T00:30:15Z")
> **[Pussy bow](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pussy_bow)** > > A lavallière, also called a pussycat bow or pussybow, is a style of neckwear worn with women's and girls' blouses and bodices. It is a bow tied at the neck, which has been likened to those sometimes put on "pussy cats". > While bows at the neck had been worn since at least the 19th century, the term "pussy cat bow" took hold in the 20th century. It has been suggested that "There is always been something subtly subversive about the pussybow", and that it "evokes defiance". Kate Strasdin of Falmouth... > **[Melania Trump’s pussy-bow Gucci blouse sparks memes, jeers and discussion](https://www.latimes.com/fashion/la-ig-style-fashion-melania-trump-gucci-blouse-20161010-snap-htmlstory.html)** > > Melania Trump wore a fuchsia pussy bow blouse from Gucci to Sunday night's debate, which only seemed to taunt social media. ---
**Author:** ![coremelt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@coremelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coremelt)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/6 "2016-10-11T00:35:57Z")
I think the Pussy Bow thing is a stretch. Yeah she’s probably inwardly laughing at the absurdity of this campaign, but the plagiarism thing was a big deal. If she was that smart she would have done something more subtle than lifting 3 entire sentences from a Michelle Obama speech. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/7 "2016-10-11T00:37:01Z")
Oh… pussy CAT bow. Geez Louise. Never in my (rather old) life heard it referred to without “cat” in the name. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/8 "2016-10-11T00:41:06Z")
It’s not a term I was familiar with but I’ll be the first to concede my ignorance of fashion. But as the Wikipedia article notes, pussy bows were a favorite of Margaret Thatcher’s and they’ve therefore become popular among conservative women politicians. I wouldn’t read anything more into it than that. ---
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/9 "2016-10-11T00:48:31Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > [Pussy bow - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pussy_bow) > > [Melania Trump’s pussy-bow Gucci blouse sparks memes, jeers and discussion](http://www.latimes.com/fashion/la-ig-style-fashion-melania-trump-gucci-blouse-20161010-snap-htmlstory.html) I’ll be darned. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/10 "2016-10-11T00:52:29Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > Basically far from just being a trophy wife, she is far wiser than anyone expects and has a level of social competence far beyond her husband. Twigs and dead things… heck, inert objects in general have more social competence than Donald Trump, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/11 "2016-10-11T00:54:11Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > I had never (until googling just now) heard the term “pussy bow blouse.” Is it a common name that most people know? Nope. In defense of the OP’s theory (which I don’t buy) Melania was a fashion model, so she might be familiar with the term even if it isn’t in common use. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/12 "2016-10-11T00:57:48Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Oh… pussy CAT bow. Geez Louise. Never in my (rather old) life heard it referred to without “cat” in the name. I suspect a pussy bow is a term more women know than men. I’ve never heard it called a pussy cat bow, otoh, although I knew that’s the reference. OTOH, I don’t think I’ve ever heard the term in conversation since other meaning of pussy became dominant. ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/13 "2016-10-11T01:29:00Z")
She probably has a stylist who picks out her clothes for her, at least for public appearances. Certainly the stylist would have heard of the term. Simlilarly I doubt that she knows what a “Rick Roll” is, but I bet her speechwriter did. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/14 "2016-10-11T01:39:28Z")
The Pussy Bow blouse was popular with women executives in the 1980s, because you could wear it with a suit or blazer and the stupid looking bow was an approximation of a man’s necktie. Why would a professional model wear one in 2016? Unless she had an…_ulterior motive_… (Organ sting) ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/15 "2016-10-11T01:44:06Z")
Truthfully, as I watch her drift along with no facial expression whatsoever, I’ve been wondering if she’s drugged to the gills. I wouldn’t blame her if she was. I certainly don’t think she’s in the lead in the relationship. I think she’s drowning. ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/16 "2016-10-11T01:47:57Z")
The job of a professional model is not to select clothes. Their job is to walk down a runway or pose for a shoot wearing clothes that have been selected for them by others. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/17 "2016-10-11T02:03:36Z")
> [@Alley\_Dweller](#): > > She probably has a stylist who picks out her clothes for her, at least for public appearances. > > Certainly the stylist would have heard of the term. > > Simlilarly I doubt that she knows what a “Rick Roll” is, but I bet her speechwriter did. I disagree. I think she may be a lot more wise and socially competent than most people realize. She probably played on Donald’s narcissism to marry a billionaire and set herself financially up for life, and now she is subtly trolling everyone due to the absurdity of the political situation. I don’t think she is a clueless trophy wife. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/18 "2016-10-11T02:22:07Z")
> [@Sunny\_Daze](#): > > Truthfully, as I watch her drift along with no facial expression whatsoever, I’ve been wondering if she’s drugged to the gills. I wouldn’t blame her if she was. > > I certainly don’t think she’s in the lead in the relationship. I think she’s drowning. I mostly agree with this, although she did have an expression on her face at the start of the 2nd debate. It was grim. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/19 "2016-10-11T02:38:42Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > I disagree. I think she may be a lot more wise and socially competent than most people realize. She probably played on Donald’s narcissism to marry a billionaire and set herself financially up for life, and now she is subtly trolling everyone due to the absurdity of the political situation. > > I don’t think she is a clueless trophy wife. She is an artist…a Dadaist!!! A Dadaist who really likes money! That’s the only rational explanation! ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2016, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198/20 "2016-10-11T04:17:52Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Oh… pussy CAT bow. Geez Louise. Never in my (rather old) life heard it referred to without “cat” in the name. I had never heard it either. I am amused that the [NY Post](http://nypost.com/2016/10/10/melania-trump-really-wore-a-pussy-bow-shirt-to-the-debate/) calls the blouse “pussy-bow,” while censoring Donald’s remark as “p\_\_\_y”.[CBS News](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/melania-trump-inadvertently-wears-pussy-bow-to-second-presidential-debate/) is similar, though it censors the latter as “p\*\*\*y”. [Fox News](http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2016/10/10/melania-trump-says-her-p-y-bow-shirt-at-debate-was-unintentional.html) on the other hand censors even the name of the blouse as “p—y-bow.” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-melania-trump-trolling-everyone-is-so-why/768198.md?page=2)