Here it is. We're there. Four years after a violent and savage departure that should have disqualified him forever, Donald Trump is indeed back in the White House. On Monday, January 20, in a ceremony during which he displayed a somber air, boorish manners and uninhibited masculinity, delivered rambling speeches and repeated radical promises, he was officially inaugurated as the 47th president of the United States with great pomp and with his family. At his side in this image are his wife, Melania, his daughter, Ivanka and two of his sons, the bearded Eric and the beardless Barron.
For the occasion, Trump abandoned his usual red tie but lost none of his color. In fact, his skin appeared even more orange than it did four years ago. Allowing us to recall, for the fun of it, that in 2018, a former assistant to the American president revealed in a book that the failure of a tanning bed installed at the White House led to the immediate firing of the technician involved.
As for Melania, she donned a hostile and dark hat. To be precise, the model in question, by designer Eric Javits, was inspired by what the Americans call a boater hat and we in France call a canotier. Flat and round, made of straw for men and every conceivable material for women, the boater hat was originally designed to protect canoe crews from the sun. Today, and in gray weather, it's still helpful in keeping louts at bay.
Ivanka, for her part, chose an entirely different kind of hat. Round, flat and off-center, it's called a fascinator or bibi. Introduced during WWII, fascinators marked the disenchantment of that time with the imposing, extravagant models in vogue before the war. More discreet, modest and practical for everyday life, they embodied a form of hat reduction and were even considered the prerogative of sensible, virtuous women. Go figure.
By victoriously raising his right arm, Eric provoked no controversy, unlike Elon Musk. But he did reveal the cuff of his shirt sleeve. To be precise, a musketeer cuff, allowing us to make a little historical-textile point. This type of cuff, which appeared in the 18th century, became an attribute of musket-wielding soldiers and cavalrymen. Sticklers for fashion, less so for comfort, these musketeers held their cuffs together with imposing colored ribbons. Eric preferred cufflinks. It's hard to argue with him on this point.
Translation of an original article published in French on lemonde.fr; the publisher may only be liable for the French version.