Trump granddaughter gets praise and sympathy for singing for Xi
For many Chinese people, it was a slightly excruciating reminder of their own childhoods, that moment when their parents aggressively boast of their accomplishments in front of other people, or, even worse, force them to perform for relatives and members of the older generation.
But for 6-year-old Arabella Kushner, the difference was that her performance would be scrutinised by none other than the Chinese president, his wife and a good proportion of the Chinese nation.
Shortly after arriving in China, President Donald Trump proudly showed his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping a video of his granddaughter singing and reciting poems in Mandarin.
The video later became a hit on the Chinese internet, as did another video of Arabella doing the same thing back in 2016. She also performed for Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, when they visited Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in April.
This time, Arabella, in a Chinese-style dress and in front of an American flag, dedicated her performance to “Grandpa Xi” and “Grandma Peng.” The Chinese leader in turn graded her with an ‘A plus’. Her Chinese is very good: She is reported to have been learning it from her Chinese nanny since she was an infant.
On the Chinese internet, Arabella won praise — one netizen called her an “adorable girl”. But there also comments expressing sympathy for the child, from people who may have suffered their own mild childhood embarrassments.