Role of ‘First Daughter’ changing
Ivanka Trump will have a much more prominent role in father’s administration
With Ivanka Trump, the typically minor role of first daughter could get a major makeover.
She was a key player in her father’s winning campaign, and people are closely watching the next moves by president-elect Donald Trump’s 35-year-old daughter.
She’s attended her father’s transition meetings with high-profile figures and has indicated her interest in working on policy issues such as child care.
The Trump Organization executive vice-president also owns her own company that sells clothes and jewelry. While three of Donald Trump’s adult children are viewed as close advisers, he often highlights Ivanka and has made clear he’d love to have her with him when he moves into the White House.
It’s not clear whether that would be in a formal position. But Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway suggested this past week there may be an exception to anti-nepotism laws for Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner, who runs a real estate and construction business.
Previous first daughters have played a social role in the White House. During Harry Truman’s presidency, when his wife, Bess, was home in Missouri, their daughter Margaret would play hostess. But it would be “unprecedented” for Ivanka to serve as a close adviser, said Katherine Jellison of Ohio University.
“If there was ever a first daughter who played such a close advisory role to her dad, she really kept it under cover,” Jellison said.
What we know so far about Ivanka Trump:
THE BUSINESS
Ivanka Trump is an executive vice-president of the family business along with brothers Donald Jr., 38, and Eric, 32. Just how the president-elect will handle his business interests remains unclear. Trump has said he will turn management over to his sons and executives.
Ivanka has her own business to consider. She recently drew criticism after her company promoted a $10,800 bracelet she wore during a 60 Minutes interview on CBS. The spokeswoman for the company later apologized.
Since then, Ivanka has sought to put some distance between herself and her fashion business.
A letter posted on her website said she would separate her social media accounts from her company’s.
THE WHITE HOUSE
Trump’s team says no official decision has been made about Ivanka’s role, and she was not made available for an interview.
But the president-elect has made his wishes known.
“I think we’ll have to see how the laws read. I would love to be able to have them involved,” Trump said on Fox News of Ivanka and her husband.
Congress passed an anti-nepotism law in 1967 that prohibits the president from appointing a family member to work in an office or agency the president oversees.
But Conway said on MSNBC’s Morning Joe that the law has “an exception if you want to work in the West Wing, because the president is able to appoint his own staff.”
Richard Painter, chief White House ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, said: “I don’t believe that this statute exempts the White House.”
POLICY PLATFORM
While much about Ivanka’s future role is murky, her policy interests are quite clear.
Throughout the campaign, Ivanka highlighted her interest in issues like child care, pay equity and maternity leave.
Ivanka met with a group of Republican congresswomen on these issues in September. Since the election, she has reached out to members of Congress to continue the conversation, said Sarah Chamberlain, the president and CEO of Republican Main Street Partnership, who said she has not heard from the future first daughter.
WHITE HOUSE HOSTESS
Throughout the campaign, Ivanka played a more prominent role than Trump’s third wife, Melania, who has focused her attention on 10-year-old son Barron.
Donald Trump said last month that Melania and Barron would not move from New York to the White House until the end of the school year. She could still come in for major events, but there is historical precedent for a daughter or sister to step in and shoulder some of the social responsibilities.