Even before she became the president's daughter, Ivanka Trump has lived her entire life in
the public eye.
At just nine years old, she became a target of the tabloids during her parents' infamous
breakup, which played out in real time in the media and in movies.
"Don't get mad.
Get everything."
So, it's no surprise that as an adult, Ivanka has maintained a tightly controlled public
image of herself and her marriage to fellow real estate mogul, Jared Kushner.
But certain cracks in her facade, like her much-memed meeting with Justin Trudeau, and
the time she forgot to wear her wedding ring on The View, have lead to speculation about
what's really going on with her marriage to Jared Kushner.
Here are some clues.
Religious rifts
Jared Kushner's devout faith in Orthodox Judaism reportedly led he and Ivanka to temporarily
split a few years back.
The problem laid primarily with Kushner's father, Charles Kushner, who was the one who
pushed for Ivanka to convert before allowing them to marry.
A guest at their wedding said the elder Kushner even brought up the subject in his toast to
the newlyweds at the reception, saying something along the lines of,
"Look, everyone thinks she's great, but being Jewish is just unbelievably important to us,
and she's not Jewish.
It's a problem for me, a genuine problem.
Then I watched and got to see she's in love with my son and it wasn't what I thought in
the beginning.
I feel right about it."
How's that for botched Mazel tov?
But if Ivanka felt any kind of pressure over the conversion, she doesn't seem to anymore.
She now feels that her newfound faith has blended both the modern and traditional aspects
of her life as well as strengthened their family.
She told Vogue, "I really find that with Judaism, it creates an amazing blueprint for family
connectivity."
She added that observing the Sabbath allows the busy parents to disconnect and unwind
each week from their busy schedules.
Speaking of which …
Crazy calendars
If you asked most married couples to compliment each other, one of the last things they would
cite would be a resume item.
But Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner aren't most couples.
Prior to joining Trump's administration, they were both leaders of powerful, multi-billion
dollar real estate organizations.
Ivanka held a leadership role in The Trump Organization, and Jared was CEO of Kushner
Companies, his family's real estate empire, as well as majority shareholder and publisher
of The Observer.
As you can imagine, these executive positions, while clearly rewarding, consume a lot of
time and energy.
Ivanka has said she works 12-14 hour days.
And speaking to Harper's Bazaar, she boasted her pride in always arriving before everyone
else at the office.
That kind of drive must've been a huge turn-on for Kushner, who actually met Trump during
what was supposed to be a business meeting.
And that transactional nature has continued throughout their marriage.
The couple's wedding program even allegedly included a "marketing flyer" for one of Donald
Trump's golf courses, a claim which Ivanka denies.
But it's kind of believable, considering how Kushner described their marriage to Vogue,
saying:
"I would say she is definitely the CEO of our household, whereas I'm more on the board
of directors."
Whoa, calm down there, Cassanova!
Even their date nights are reportedly business-oriented as he most likes to take her to his newest
property acquisitions.
The senior citizen squad
Unlike her party-girl half sister, Tiffany, Ivanka Trump has always seemed like an old
soul.
She told Purple Magazine, "Partying was never a major part of my life.
I don't drink a lot.
I've always preferred quiet settings, like dinners."
It's probably the reason Ivanka and Chelsea Clinton have gotten along so well.
"Our friendship didn't start because of politics.
It certainly isn't going end because of politics."
Outside of that high-profile friendship, though, Ivanka was never really one for "the scene."
According to Esquire, Kushner tends to surround himself with older captains of industry, which
was evident at his 35th birthday celebration in which one guest described the median age
of partygoers as "somewhere near seventy."
And this probably works just fine for Ivanka, who once said,
"Jared and I will go walk around neighborhoods and look at properties that he owns and that
I own, but that's fun."
So, chances are, you won't find these guys at your friendly neighborhood kegger any time
soon.
Distancing from the dads (sorta)
Though Ivanka is definitely more extroverted than her husband, neither she nor Jared come
close to matching the huge personalities of their fathers.
Donald Trump is obviously less poised than this daughter, and Charles Kushner, Jared's
father, is also a tenacious businessman with a controversial personality.
In fact, both Donald Trump and Charles Kushner have also been embroiled in their share of
scandals, with Kushner actually serving two years in jail for a series of bizarre crimes
including tampering with elections and arranging to blackmail his own sister.
So, while they both stem from outlandish dads, Ivanka and Jared are actually pretty polished,
all things considered.
A match made in … somewhere
For all of the speculation and media scrutiny surrounding the Trump family, Jared and Ivanka's
marriage actually shows no signs of strain.
Granted, they play everything extremely close to the chest, but most normal marriages would
falter under the stress of just the 24 hour media coverage, let alone the privacy intrusion
of a presidential election.
But Jared and Ivanka's marriage is anything but normal, and the introduction of the stressful
world of politics has only seemed to strengthen their bond.
Ivanka told Vogue that Jared is her ideal partner because his drive and ambitions match
her own, saying, "His own dreams are bold, and I love that in someone," Of course, that's
just one way to put it.
Another source close to the couple, speaking to Esquire, described them a bit more cynically,
saying, "Power, power, power, power.
Jared's got plenty of money, but the only way he can separate himself from his family
is power.
They're a great match because that's also what Ivanka is after."
As they both continue to the climb the ranks in the Oval Office, it's clear they've got
no shortage of that these days.
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