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An Instagram video from the French government, showing President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka inserting herself into a conversation with world leaders at the G-20 summit, went viral Saturday night. Ivanka attended the G-20 along with her father and gave an address about women’s economic empowerment.
The viral video begins with French president Emmanuel Macron making a comment about social justice. Then UK Prime Minister Teresa May joined in, saying that people pay more attention when you address the topic from an economic angle. “As soon as you talk about the economic aspect, though, a lot of people start listening who wouldn’t otherwise listen,” May said.
That was when Ivanka decided to seize the moment, jumping into the conversation with an off-topic remark about how the defense sector is dominated by men. “And it’s the same for the defense side,” Ivanka said, “in terms of the whole sort of business, it’s been very male dominated.”
As the first daughter spoke, IMF head Christine Lagarde could hardly disguise her disdain and made a range of irritated facial expressions.
Ivanka’s involvement in the summit drew criticism from Democrats. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) shared the video and critiqued the presence of the president’s daughter. “It may be shocking to some, but being someone’s daughter actually isn’t a career qualification,” she wrote in a tweet. “It hurts our diplomatic standing when the President phones it in & the world moves on. The US needs our President working the G20. Bringing a qualified diplomat couldn’t hurt either.”
Rep. Ted Leiu (D-CA) also shared the video on Twitter and wrote, “I would like to hear Ivanka Trump‘s explanation about this video. Oh wait, Senior White House Advisor @IvankaTrump blocked me. Can you forward the below video to her and ask for her response? Thanks.”
This isn’t the first time Ivanka Trump has been out-of-place at a G20 summit. In 2017, she took her father’s place at the table during a meeting with the presidents of China, Turkey, and Russia along with the prime minister of Britain and the German chancellor. The move drew criticism. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) said at the time, who said, “It does not make good sense. Here you have the president of the United States at the G20, representing us as the leader of the free world, and so he’s going to play politics and give his daughter a chance to have a place in the sun and to be seen at a very important meeting that she knows nothing about. She cannot in any way deal with those members who are there representing those countries. She doesn’t know anything about these issues.”
Judging by this video, it seems like Waters’ comments still ring true today.
