When you think about it, the position of First Lady is pretty strange. On one hand, it’s one of the most important jobs in America because the woman in this position is someone the nation looks to as a leader. At the same time, this is an unelected position, and the women in question have infinitely less power than their famous husbands.
As it turns out, they also have to follow a series of crazy rules. No matter how important the woman, every woman in this position–from Michelle Obama to Melania Trump–has to follow some of the strangest rules. How strange are we talking? Keep reading to discover the weirdest ones!
First Ladies can’t get paid and must spend their own money
Most Americans associate the position of First Lady with wealth. After all, most of the women who become FLOTUS are already rich when they assume the position (like Melania Trump) or become rich soon after they leave (like Michelle Obama). For this reason, some citizens are very critical of First Ladies who seemingly lead very swanky lifestyles, all funded by taxpayer dollars.
However, that assumption is completely wrong! It turns out that First Ladies and their families must pay for things like meals, clothing, toiletries, and assorted other daily costs out of their own pockets. And more often than you might think, the responsibility of budgeting and paying for everything falls to the First Lady.
On top of that, she cannot draw any money from the position. So even though each FLOTUS is expected to assume major responsibilities (Hillary Clinton’s schedule from her eight years as First Lady is a whopping 11,000 pages long!), they are never paid for what they do.
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No First Lady opens her own windows
It’s a great honor to become FLOTUS. After all, what woman wouldn’t want to live in the White House? Unfortunately, it’s a position that comes with a lot of baggage, and that baggage leads to surprising rules. For example, no First Lady or the rest of her family is allowed to open a window and must have Secret Service members handle the matter for them.
That may sound very fancy, like having personal servants on hand at all times. Sadly, though, this FLOTUS rule doesn’t exist simply so these ladies can feel fancy. The rule stems from the tragic assassination of JFK Jr. That incident proved just how vulnerable the president and his family could be. Therefore, they cannot open windows for themselves just in case someone is outside and waiting to shoot them!
First Ladies can’t drive themselves
Pop quiz, hotshot: how often have you seen Melania Trump behind the wheel of a car? Or Donald Trump, for that matter? The answer is that you never see that happen at all. Of course, you might think this is just a matter of personal preference. The Trumps were fabulously wealthy before moving into the White House, and like most rich people, Donald and Melania were happy to have others handle the driving.
Now, though, the two of them can’t drive even if they want to. This, too, goes back to the assassination of JFK, Jr. while he was being driven as part of a presidential motorcade. Now, when either the president or FLOTUS wants to drive somewhere, they are driven by a Secret Service agent. In turn, these agents have special evasive maneuvers training that they can rely on in the event of an attack.
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A FLOTUS cannot keep exotic gifts
One of the coolest parts of being a First Lady is that you get some really cool stuff. Each FLOTUS is frequently gifted with designer dresses ahead of major events. On top of that, visiting foreign dignitaries often gift First Ladies with extravagant items. For example, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave Jill Biden a 7.5-carat diamond in 2023, and it was worth a cool $20,000!
Unfortunately, First Ladies aren’t actually allowed to keep all this cool stuff. The gifts from foreign governments are considered gifts to America and not the FLOTUS, so they ultimately end up in the National Archives. As for those designer dresses, they must be donated after being worn for a single time, which is the real reason you never see First Ladies rock the same killer dresses on more than one occasion.
Limitations on redecorating the White House
It’s arguably a bit old-fashioned, but the job of decorating certain things in the White House often falls to the First Lady. For example, each FLOTUS must pick out a Christmas tree each year. It’s usually considered an honor, though Melania Trump was infamously recorded complaining about this duty in recordings released in 2020.
Even if a FLOTUS loved decorating the White House, though, there are rules about how far they can go. That’s because certain areas of the White House are considered part of America’s national history and cannot be dramatically changed without permission. Whose permission, though? The White House curator, who must approve any ideas a FLOTUS has before any changes are made.
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