Ivanka Trump's Sense of Entitlement is No Joke

by Rory Gillies

Ivanka Trump pictured with world leaders

Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka received a significant amount of mockery and criticism this past week (see the #UnwantedIvanka memes) after attending the G20 summit and seemingly attempting to take part in discussions with world leaders. This criticism is perfectly well founded. The "First Daughter" trying to take a role in world politics, despite no qualification to do so besides being related to the President, is quite frankly disgraceful and even downright worrying.

Ever since her father was elected POTUS Ivanka has, in the words of Suzanne Moore, “been on some permanent ‘take your child to work day’”. As Trump's wife, Melania, the First Lady, has seemingly gone AWOL (absent without leave, basically just bogging off to avoid responsibilities) Ivanka has apparently stepped in to take this role. However, unlike other First Ladies and First Daughters (and First Sons), Ivanka takes it way too far. In a clear example of nepotism, Ivanka, as a senior advisor to her father (not that he listens to anyone) has access to multiple government departments and apparently pushes for women's rights, although she hasn’t come up with any results of her supposed campaigning yet…

The real concern stems from the fact that not only does Ivanka have no qualifications to hobnob with world leaders, many of whom have worked their whole lives to get to that kind of status, but she is completely unaccountable for her actions. Rather than being appointed by the President and approved by the Senate like the current Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Ivanka is just tagging along using the influence she has over her father. This is worrying as Ivanka has no official post from which she can be removed. Jennifer Lawless, professor of politics at the University of Virginia, told the Washington Post: “She’s not Secretary of State, but she’s acting like she has the same clout as Mike Pompeo. She is not a formal diplomat, but she’s the one having formal conversations.”

Regardless of whether you support Trump or not, this shameless nepotism is an issue that must be addressed if he is reelected in 2020, if his administration and his country are to avoid this sort of embarrassment by his family in the future.