The first lady appeared to be wearing a Zara jacket with the astonishing caption: ‘I really don’t care. Do U?’

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

When Melania Trump met with detained children at the Texas border on Thursday, she struck a compassionate tone, asking staff at the facility: “How I can help … these children to reunite with their families as quickly as possible?”

Melania Trump visits child detention center as fate of families remains unclear Read more

Earlier in the day, though, the first lady’s attire sent a different message. As she boarded a plane to Texas, she appeared to be wearing a Zara jacket with the astonishing caption: “I really don’t care. Do U?”

Photos taken as she boarded the plane at Andrews airbase didn’t capture the jacket’s full text, but it seems to be the same as the one that costs $39 and is available from the Zara website.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest The jacket as it appears on the Zara website. Photograph: PR Image/Zara

According to a pool report, Trump’s communications director, Stephanie Grisham, told a reporter via email: “It’s a jacket. There was no hidden message. After today’s important visit to Texas, I hope the media isn’t going to choose to focus on her wardrobe.”

Play Video 0:44 Melania Trump: How can I help reunite these families? – video

However, a tweet from President Trump later suggested that there was meaning behind the jacket, saying his wife’s coat was referencing the media rather than traumatised children.

He tweeted: “I REALLY DON’T CARE, DO U?” written on the back of Melania’s jacket, refers to the Fake News Media. Melania has learned how dishonest they are, and she truly no longer cares!”

Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) “I REALLY DON’T CARE, DO U?” written on the back of Melania’s jacket, refers to the Fake News Media. Melania has learned how dishonest they are, and she truly no longer cares!

Some commentators were taking Melania’s choice of attire as a politically calculated move.

Amnesty International’s US branch tweeted they were shaken “by the blatant lack of empathy” the first lady demonstrated when she chose to wear the jacket.

The actor and outspoken Trump critic Patricia Arquette tweeted “Melania Trump just won worst dressed for the century.”

Many have praised Trump for seeming to diverge from Donald Trump’s attitude on separating children from their families.

On Sunday, while the president was still defending the policy, her communications director released a statement saying the first lady “hates to see children separated from their families and hopes both sides of the aisle can finally come together to achieve successful immigration reform”.

The great Melania Trump mystery. Does she really care? | Arwa Mahdawi Read more

It’s not clear whether this jacket is a nod to those concerned that she is being too soft on immigration, sending some sort of message as her husband claimed, or was some sort of wardrobe malfunction.

It is, however, unusual for Melania Trump to wear inexpensive clothes when on public business. At the G7 summit last year, she wore a floral coat worth $51,000. While arriving back from a trip last June, she was spotted carrying an overnight bag: a Hermès Birkin bag worth $13,500.

Despite the controversy it caused, when Melania returned to Andrews air force base later in the afternoon she was still wearing the jacket in front of reporters.