We've known for some time that Melania and Barron Trump would not join the President in the White House immediately following his inauguration. The plan was for the two of them to join Donald Trump after 10-year-old Barron finished his current year of school in New York City.
There are conflicting reports, however, about whether that will actually happen. A story in Us Weekly suggests that they may never make the move to Washington.
"They will reevaluate toward the end of the school year if they will keep this arrangement or if Melania and Barron will move to Washington," a source told the magazine. "They could go either way right now. They will ultimately do what's best for Barron."
Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, who was recently appointed senior adviser to the first lady, disputed that report in a statement to CNN:
"Mrs. Trump will be moving to DC and settling in to the White House at the end of the school year, splitting her time between New York and DC in the meantime," she said. "Mrs. Trump is honored to serve this country and is taking the role and responsibilities of first lady very seriously. It has only been a short time since the inauguration and the first lady is going to go about her role in a pragmatic and thoughtful way that is unique and authentic to her."
While it's not clear exactly how much it would cost the city of New York to protect Melania and Barron Trump by themselves if they decide to stay in Manhattan, CNN reported that it cost more than $1 million per day to provide security for President Trump and his family while he was still living in New York after the election.
Last week the president told the New York Times that his wife and son will "come down on weekends." In an interview with ABC News World News Tonight anchor David Muir, Trump said that not having Melania and Barron there doesn't make him lonely "because I end up working longer. And that's OK."
But this past weekend, the first lady and first son stayed in New York City according to Us Weekly, whose source reported that "Melania is actively building her team, including hiring a chief of staff, a senior adviser and a social secretary, among other key positions. While she is a mom first, she is very much embracing the role and responsibilities of first lady."
Meanwhile, Ivanka Trump seems to be quietly taking on some official duties. She accompanied the president on an unannounced trip to Delaware's Dover Air Force Base to the Navy SEAL who was killed during a weekend raid on al Qaeda militants in Yemen.
William "Ryan" Owens, a 36-year-old chief special warfare operator, was the first member of the military killed in action since Trump became president. He was one of approximately 30 people killed during last weekend's raid, and one of two American casualties; the other American killed was the 8-year-old American daughter of Anwar al-Awlaki, an al Qaeda leader who was born in New Mexico and died in a U.S. drone strike in 2011.
As a result, three officials said, the attacking SEAL team found itself dropping onto a reinforced al Qaeda base defended by landmines, snipers, and a larger than expected contingent of heavily armed Islamist extremists."Almost everything went wrong" with the raid, a senior U.S. military official told NBC. It was Trump's first covert counterterrorism operation, and Reuters cites military officials who allege that the president allegedly approved the operation "without sufficient intelligence, ground support, or adequate backup preparations."
The president and Ivanka Trump spent several hours with the Owens family at the base.
"I just returned from an amazing visit with a great, great family at Dover," Trump said later that day at Rex Tillerson's swearing-in ceremony as Secretary of State. "It is something very sad, very beautiful. Ryan, a great man."
Additional reporting from the Associated Press
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