Ivanka Trump escorted her father, President-elect Donald Trump, to meet Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and the internet is not having it. The shoe designer, 35, and her husband, Jared Kushner, sat in on Donald's private discussion with Abe, 62, at Trump Tower on Thursday, November 17 — which sparked major backlash.
Many social media users expressed their discontent with Ivanka and Kushner’s attendance shortly after photos emerged online.
“Ivanka Trump has no business being in the room when Trump met with Prime Minister Abe,” Japanese American actor George Takei tweeted. "She's family, not foreign advisor."
“Ivanka Trump, responsible for running Trump businesses, sits in on meeting with a foreign power. Conflict of interest is an understatement,” another upset Twitter user wrote, while another fumed: “Ivanka Trump has no business sitting in on meetings with foreign leaders. What an absolute FU to our Democracy and country.”
During a Sunday, November 13, interview with 60 Minutes, Ivanka said that she has no interest in a political career even now that her father has won this year’s presidential election. “I’m going to be a daughter,” she said. “I’ve said throughout the campaign that I am very passionate about certain issues. And that I want to fight for them … but not in a formal administrative capacity.”
According to CNN, Abe wanted to meet with Donald so he could “build trust” with the real estate tycoon to safeguard the relationship between their two countries.
The soon-to-be POTUS took to Instagram on Thursday to update his followers about his meeting with Abe. “It was a pleasure to have Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stop by my home and begin a great friendship,” he wrote.