Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour appeared to throw subtle shade at Melania Trump when she was asked about the first lady’s style, but turned the conversation to former FLOTUS Michelle Obama instead.
In a new episode of “The Economist asks” podcast released on Friday, host Anne McElvoy asked Wintour if she “valued” the fact that Trump wore several British-inspired outfits during her husband President Donald Trump’s state visit to the United Kingdom in June.
Wintour sidestepped the question and made it all about Obama:
I think first lady Michelle Obama really was so incredible in every decision she made about fashion. She supported young American designers. She supported designers, indeed, from all over the world. She was the best ambassador that this country could possibly have in many ways, obviously, way beyond fashion.
“But she’s not the first lady now,” McElvoy responded. “So what about the one that you’ve got now?”
“To me, she (Obama) is the example that I admire,” Wintour replied.
Check out the segment here:
McElvoy earlier asked Wintour if it was “a conscious decision” not to give much coverage to the current first lady, who has not been featured on Vogue’s cover since 2005.
“There are so many women in politics that deserve celebration,” Wintour responded, citing its recent photo shoot featuring five of the six female 2020 Democratic presidential candidates.
Earlier this year, Wintour suggested she wasn’t bothered about featuring Trump in the magazine.
“To be on the cover of Vogue doesn’t define Mrs. Trump, she’s been there, done that long before she was first lady,” fired back Stephanie Grisham, the then-Trump spokesperson who has since replaced Sarah Huckabee Sanders as White House press secretary.
“Her role as first lady of the United States and all that she does is much more important than some superficial photo shoot and cover,” Grisham added. “This just further demonstrates how biased the fashion magazine industry is, and shows how insecure and small-minded Anna Wintour really is.”
Check out the full podcast here and responses to the interview here: