At first glance, it would appear that Donald Trump's children would
follow him to the ends of the earth. But believe it or not,
the former president's children do have their limits where their father is concerned.
Ivanka Trump has a history of remaining quiet when the public
urges her to speak out against Donald Trump. But in an interview with CBS News in 2017, the mother
of three revealed that she and her father aren't always on the same page. Ivanka told the outlet:
"I would say not to conflate lack of public denouncement with silence. I think there are
multiple ways to have your voice heard. ... So where I disagree with my father,
he knows it, and I express myself with total candor."
It sounds like most of Ivanka and Donald's disagreements take place behind closed
doors. Regardless of the fact that the former senior advisor calls her father out in private,
she has been criticized for her lack of public action against the former president. Protestors
held an event outside of Ivanka's home after Donald signed an order that reversed previously
implemented policies that tackled climate change. Protestors shared they were frustrated that Ivanka
had previously supported such causes but didn't call out her father's decision. Firas Nasr,
who worked for one of the organizations that planned the protest, told Fortune:
"If she does support us, she needs to speak out for us while we are under attack."
Ivanka Trump's opinion on the infamous January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol and claims
of election fraud differ from that of her father, and you might recall that
the former U.S. president wasn't happy about this. To recap, Ivanka and Attorney General
William Barr were asked about whether or not they doubted the legitimacy of the 2020 U.S.
presidential election results. Videos of both Ivanka and Barr's depositions were played in
front of the U.S. House Select Committee on the January 6 attack. Barr said in his video:
"I made it clear I did not agree with the idea of saying the election was
stolen and putting out this stuff [...] And I didn't want to be a part of it."
"My opinion then and my opinion now is that the election was not stolen by fraud."
Ivanka was then asked what she thought about the attorney general's statement. She responded:
"I respect Attorney General Barr. So, I accepted what he was saying."
Donald later took to his social media platform,
Truth Social, to share his opinion on his daughter's statement, writing,
"Ivanka Trump was not involved in looking at, or studying,
Election results. She had long since checked out and was, in my opinion,
only trying to be respectful to Bill Barr and his position as Attorney General (he sucked!)."
Neither Ivanka Trump nor her brothers were quick to support Donald Trump's handling of
the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Filmmaker Alex Holder asked Ivanka, Eric Trump,
and Donald Trump Jr. for their opinion on the Capitol attack in his docuseries,
Unprecedented. This series follows the Trump family throughout the 2020
U.S. presidential election and the subsequent claims of election fraud.
"Frankly, we did win this election."
In the movie, Ivanka, Eric, and Trump Jr. all refused to talk about January 6. However,
Donald shared a lengthy statement that his kids could have defended — yet it seems
they refused to. The former U.S. president said in Unprecedented:
"A very small portion, as you know, went down to the Capitol and then a very small portion
of them went in. But I will tell you, they were angry from the standpoint of what happened in
the election [...] And I believe that was a big part of what happened on January 6."
"I think I treat people well unless they don't treat me well, in which case you go to war."
While Donald's kids stayed quiet in this docuseries, Trump Jr. later took to Twitter to
suggest that he wasn't a fan of how the January 6th committee handled their investigation.
You might recall when Donald Trump contracted COVID-19 during his presidency. He was admitted
to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to receive treatment,
and a decision he made there received mixed reactions. Donald took a car ride around the
hospital to greet onlookers before he was fully recovered, and Secret Service members
accompanied him. James Phillips, assistant professor of emergency medicine at The George
Washington University's medical school, took to Twitter to criticize the car ride, writing:
"Every single person in the vehicle during that completely unnecessary
Presidential 'drive-by' just now has to be quarantined for
14 days. They might get sick. They may die. For political theater."
It turns out even Donald's own kids may have been
alarmed by his joy ride around the hospital. According to Vanity Fair,
anonymous sources claimed that Donald Trump Jr. was particularly concerned. One source alleged:
"Don Jr. has said he wants to stage an intervention,
but Jared and Ivanka keep telling Trump how great he's doing."
They also claimed the eldest Trump child didn't want to be the only one to talk to his father.
When Donald Trump announced that he
was running for President for a third time in November of 2022, only Eric Trump and
Barron Trump were present. Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump Jr. were nowhere to be found,
and it seems this may be a sign of how they feel about their father's decision
to seek a presidential nomination in 2024. In fact, Ivanka came forward to announce she
wants nothing to do with politics. She shared a statement explaining why she made the decision:
"I love my father very much. This time around I am choosing to prioritize my young children and
the private life we are creating as a family. I do not plan to be involved in politics."
Reports alleged that Donald begged Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner, to attend his campaign
announcement. If true, it looks like his efforts fell short, though Kushner was present. As for
Trump Jr., according to The Daily Beast, he was on a hunting trip and couldn't catch a flight back in
time due to dangerous weather conditions. Luckily for Donald, it looks like his son might still be
on board with his campaign. We'll have to wait and see if Trump Jr. will address his absence.