Ivanka Trump, a senior White House adviser and first daughter, not-so-subtly dropped by President Trump’s meeting with Congressional leaders and some Republican leaders were visibly upset.
Frank Thorp, a reporter covering Congress for NBC, tweeted: “Aide briefed on WH mtg says @IvankaTrump entered Oval to say hello, and GOP leaders were visibly annoyed by her presence.”
Aide briefed on WH mtg says @IvankaTrump entered Oval to say hello, and GOP leaders were visibly annoyed by her presence.
— Frank Thorp V (@frankthorp) September 6, 2017
A source also told CNN that GOP leaders were “visibly annoyed by Ivanka’s presence.”
House Speaker Paul Ryan spokeswoman AshLee Strong refuted the claim that the GOP members were offended.
During Wednesday’s meeting, Ivanka “entered the Oval Office to ‘say hello’ and the meeting careened off-topic” just after her father sided with Democrats, agreeing to support disaster relief funding, raise the debt ceiling and continue to fund the government until December, avoiding a shutdown, a source told CNN.
Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell were already “shell-shocked” by what had just happened when she arrived, a senior GOP source added.
But Ivanka Trump did not stop by just to say hello — she had an agenda.
“We asked Ivanka to briefly join the meeting for an update on the child care tax credit and how we are working to make tax reform a bipartisan issue,” Marc Short, White House director of legislative affairs, said confirming her appearance. “It was a quick and productive conversation.”
1:2 Just concluded a great meeting on #TaxReform & the Child Tax Credit w/ coalitions supporting tax relief for American working families. pic.twitter.com/sj07COcW8P
— Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) September 6, 2017
Is it nepotism? Is she a great adviser? Is Trump positioning his daughter for a future in politics?
“It’s complicated for staff because they know that, in the end, the family has the greatest influence over Trump and so what they say can be overruled as soon as they leave the room. They don’t feel like they can be as honest when a family member is in the room,” said Kate Andersen Brower, a CNN contributor and author of “First Women: The Grace & Power of America’s Modern First Ladies.”
“This relationship between father and daughter is even closer so it makes it even more difficult,” Brower added, CNN reported.
