Melania Split-Second Reaction After Holding Trump’s Hand Goes Viral and Has Folks Wondering What She Wiped Off
A short clip of Melania Trump seemingly dismissing her husband, Donald Trump, has reawakened the internet’s favorite running joke — that she’d rather sanitize than show affection.
The couple’s date night quickly turned into a viral fiasco after viewers noticed the first lady’s cold response to the president — sparking chatter that she’s no longer invested in her relationship with the real estate tycoon. By the time the clip made it on Threads, it had become a Rorschach test for how people see their marriage. Some saw a harmless gesture, others swore it was shade — and the rest just grabbed popcorn.
The clip, filmed at the Mar-a-Lago ballroom on New Year’s Eve in 2022, shows the couple dressed to impress: Donald Trump in his black tuxedo and bow tie, Melania glittering in a silver Dolce & Gabbana dress.
For a moment, they look every bit the picture-perfect pair. But as soon as Trump looks away, Melania subtly drags her hand into her other hand and gently rubs them together.
It was a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, but online sleuths caught it immediately — believing she subtly wiped her hand — and turned it into instant meme gold. “Did you see that,” asked a fan.
“I love how she wiped her hands. Another check for holding hands,” one person wrote.
Another chimed in, “She trying to wipe the cooties off her hand!”
One user imagined the first lady muttering under her breath, “Where’s the Purell??? Melania asked…” while another said, “Wiping his cold clammy sweat off!”
A fifth quipped, “I think she was looking for hand sanitizer,” pairing their comment with a gif of someone frantically pouring gel on their palms.
The humor might sting, but this isn’t Melania’s first viral brush-off.
The former Slovenian model has been caught dodging her husband’s touch before — most memorably during the couple’s 2017 trip to Israel. As they exited Air Force One, Trump reached for her hand, only for Melania to swat it away in full view of cameras. Her sharp motion became instant late-night fodder, setting the tone for future awkward encounters.
Years later, she attempted to explain it in her memoir “Melania,” published in October 2024.
“As we walked down the red carpet, I gently waved away his attempt to hold my hand,” she wrote, saying that protocol required her to walk behind the president and Israel’s prime minister, not beside them.
According to her, the “swat” wasn’t rejection — it was logistics. But after several public hand-dodges, not everyone is buying it.
Trump went in for a kiss on the lips and Melania said, “not today mother f*cker.” 😂
pic.twitter.com/tEmkFPuMbl— Turnbull (@cturnbull1968) October 28, 2024
In fact, history seems to repeat itself.
During an October 2024 rally at Madison Square Garden, the two shared an uncomfortable moment that went viral. After Melania introduced him, Trump leaned in for a kiss. What followed were three awkward air kisses — more diplomatic than romantic — that looked like something rehearsed for a soap opera they’d both rather not star in.
Even their more recent outings haven’t softened the perception. When they attended “Les Misérables” at the Kennedy Center in June 2025, a photo captured Trump gently holding one of Melania’s fingers, while she stared ahead, lips tight and expression unreadable. The image reignited conversations about their distant body language, with critics joking that she looked like she was counting down the seconds until intermission.
Lol!!! You know what’s funny to me? It’s when Trump is trying to hold Melanie’s hand, and she is desperately trying to pull away from him. Do you think she is disgusted by him? pic.twitter.com/eZ4i7bgWHf
— Willie Ross Jr. Knee Deep (@RossKneeDeep) September 8, 2025
Author Michael Wolff has been one of the louder voices interpreting their dynamic.
Promoting his “Fire and Fury” series, he told “60 Minutes Australia” that Melania “hates his guts,” claiming insiders close to the couple have described their relationship as all but transactional. While that’s a bold assertion, it has done little to cool speculation about how genuine their marriage is — especially when videos like this keep resurfacing.
For the internet, though, the story is less about insider gossip and more about comic timing. The second that hand-wipe appeared, the jokes wrote themselves. Whether she was warming her hands or wiping off her palm, people saw what they wanted to see — a woman making her true feelings known through the smallest of gestures.
