With President-elect Donald Trump set to return to the White House, questions have been raised about what former first lady Melania Trump will do in a reprisal of that role and its traditional duties, such as decorating the presidential residence for Christmas and other major events.

Melania will do what she believes is necessary as first lady, but will otherwise step back from the role to instead focus on her top priority of supporting her son Barron while he attends college in New York City, according to one report.

She may even seek out Barron's advice and input on some of her first lady duties, such as decorating, given how both his parents have raved about how intelligent and perceptive their son is and how he has been credited as a major behind-the-scenes aid to his father's successful re-election campaign.

First lady duties will revolve around Barron's needs

People magazine reported last week that former first lady Melania Trump is looking forward to reprising that role for another four years, including decorating the White House for Christmas, but only so far as the traditional duties fit around her main concern of supporting her son Barron, according to multiple unnamed sources.

"Melania will do what she is asked as first lady but under her own terms, and that includes decorating the White House for the Christmas holidays," a source from Mar-a-Lago in Florida said. "She will set her own schedule, make her own rules, and use her own taste. She will do what she wants with Barron’s needs coming first above everything. Will her attitude this term be any different than before? I doubt it."

Robin Bernstein, the former ambassador to the Dominican Republic and a friend of Melania's, agreed that her work as the first lady would revolve around her support of Barron as he attends New York University's business school over the next few years.

"Melania has exquisite taste and will make the White House beautiful and magical," Berstein said. "But she has Barron to look after, and that time will factor into how long she spends on various parts of the project."

"You can take one look at Melania and see how meticulous she is in appearance. She agrees that Christmas is a magical time of the year, and she definitely gets into it, and will continue to get into it," the friend added. "She has magical style herself and that will translate to the White House decorating. I think she will spend the time she needs to make it look perfect."

Barron at NYU could result in more time for Christmas decorating

People noted prior reports that revealed how Melania intends to split her time over the next few years between the White House, the Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, and the Trump Tower in New York, so that she can remain close to Barron while he attends college.

The social source from Mar-a-Lago suggested that people might be "surprised" by what Melania achieves as a part-time first lady and suggested that with Barron being in New York, "she may likely spend more time and devote more honest interest in decorating for Christmas in the White House," but added, "This doesn’t mean she is gung-ho, it just means she will do what she has to do. And that is nothing new."

An unnamed political source close to the Trumps told the outlet that Melania "is talented and can do a beautiful holiday scene in the White House even if she tackles it as just another duty. She will have more time this next year."

"She has an older son, she has to make her own life without her mother, and she could be a lot closer to the White House this term because Barron is in New York during those weeks leading up to the holiday season," the source added, though she may rely more on staffers this time around to implement her design ideas. "Don’t forget Melania is her own person, and she will give it the time she thinks it needs. No more or less."

Media previously pushed narrative that Melania doesn't care about Christmas

The quotes about how Melania will handle things like White House Christmas decorations in her second tenure as the first lady seemingly conflict with admittedly leaked and out-of-context audio recordings from her first time in the White House which were interpreted by the media as her not particularly caring much about the holiday spirit that caused a controversy four years ago.

A 2020 CNN report included snippets of audio from a conversation recorded by a former friend and staffer in which Melania complained about the incessant media criticism of her and her husband's policies, and said, "I’m working … my a-- off on the Christmas stuff, that you know, who gives a f--k about the Christmas stuff and decorations? But I need to do it, right?"