Page 2 - ARUBA TODAY

A2 UP FRONT
Tuesday 2 OcTOber 2018

Melania Trump

forges ahead as first

lady with Africa trip

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE and arts programs, and
Associated Press avoiding thornier issues.
WASHINGTON (AP) — With Joshua Meservey, a senior
a wave and tweet, first lady Africa policy analyst at
Melania Trump headed for the Heritage Foundation,
Africa on Monday on her countered by noting the
first big solo international “positive engagements”
trip, aiming to make child the president has had with
well-being the focus of a some African heads of
five-day, four-country tour state, including President
that will take her to every Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya,
corner of the vast and im- who met with Trump at the
poverished continent. White House in late August.
The first lady opens her first- Trump also met last week First lady Melania Trump boards a plane, Monday, Oct. 1, 2018, in Andrews Air Force Base, Md.,
ever visit to Africa on Tues- in New York with President en route to Africa.
day in Ghana in the West, Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi of Associated Press
followed by stops in Ma- Egypt. Child welfare is a top issue first lady — she did not fully Jersey, said of Mrs. Trump.
lawi in the South, Kenya in Meservey also noted that for Mrs. Trump, the mother move into the White House President Trump raised ire
the East and Egypt in the the U.S. spends consider- of a 12-year-old son. She until nearly six months after across Africa earlier this
Northeast. She departed able amounts on public focuses on the issue in the Trump took office, due to year after his private com-
Washington on Monday health and development United States through an her son’s schooling in New plaint about the conti-
with a rare wave to the initiatives in Malawi, which initiative she launched this York — Mrs. Trump has kept nent’s “s---hole countries”
press corps and an en- is among the world’s least- year named “Be Best.” This a low profile in comparison was leaked to journalists.
thusiastic tweet: “We are developed countries. week’s trip will mark her to her immediate prede- He later offered a partial
taking off for #Africa! So “I think the U.S.-Africa re- first extended period pro- cessors. She was sidelined denial in public but private-
looking forward to visiting lationship is much bigger moting the program and for several weeks following ly defended his remarks,
#Ghana #Malawi #Kenya than the president’s com- its goals abroad, separate kidney surgery in May. The Associated Press re-
& #Egypt as I take #BeBest ments, and it’s been going from an event she held dur- Immediate predecessors ported in January. He also
international. #FLOTUSinAf- on for decades and de- ing a stop in London with Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush didn’t deny the comment
rica2018.” cades,” he said. “Frankly, I the president in July. and Michelle Obama all when he was asked about
Mrs. Trump’s first extended suspect the vast majority of A former fashion model made multiple trips abroad it while hosting Nigerian
turn on the world stage average Africans have not born in Slovenia and now without their spouses dur- President Muhammadu Bu-
outside the shadow of Pres- heard of any of those dust- a naturalized U.S. citizen, ing their administration’s hari at the White House in
ident Donald Trump could ups. It’s very much an elite the 48-year-old Mrs. Trump two terms. Such travel has April.
still be complicated by her preoccupation.” has traveled extensively become expected of first The president further roiled
husband, who has spoken “Africans are, generally with the president, includ- ladies, and a similar excur- South Africa when he re-
of the continent in impolite speaking, very gracious ing to Saudi Arabia, Israel, sion was viewed as a next cently claimed on Twitter
and even vulgar terms. hosts” who will “roll out the Italy, Brussels, France, Ja- step in Mrs. Trump’s evolu- that the country is seizing
That leaves the first lady red carpet and do their pan, South Korea and the tion in one of the world’s farms and that high num-
with some fence-mending absolute best to be hospi- United Kingdom. She was in most scrutinized roles. bers of farmers are being
duties. table,” Meservey said. Finland for the president’s Former first ladies Clinton, killed. He pushed “send”
“She’s got some heavy lift- Days before the first lady July summit with Russian Bush and Obama also on the tweet after watch-
ing to do on this trip and it’s was to board a U.S. govern- President Vladimir Putin but made repeat solo trips to ing a Fox News segment
a little bit unfair because ment airplane for the flight did not go to Singapore for Africa. about land issues in South
that’s not what a first lady’s across the Atlantic, Trump Trump’s June meeting with “The first lady, when she Africa. While killings of farm-
trip should be about,” said declared at the United Na- North Korean leader Kim travels to a foreign coun- ers have been taking place
Judd Devermont, the Af- tions that he and his wife Jong Un. try, can carry the flag and for more than 20 years and
rica program director at “love Africa.” Her only other international there’s a great deal she are widely seen as part of
the Center for Strategic Mrs. Trump’s five days on foray was brief: a Septem- could do to engender South Africa’s high crime
and International Studies. the continent will feature ber 2017 day trip to Toronto good feeling about the rate, experts say white
First ladies usually practice a mix of visits to hospitals, to join Britain’s Prince Harry United States and I hope farmers have not been the
a softer form of diplomacy, schools and shelters as she at a military athletic com- she can do that,” Myra Gu- target. Nor are there signs
showing interest in a host focuses on the well-being petition. tin, who studies first ladies of widespread killings, they
nation’s schools, hospitals of children. Often seen as a reluctant at Rider University in New said.q