PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP is defending a decision to have his daughter briefly sit in for him at a table with world leaders at an international summit.
A Russian delegate tweeted a photo of Ivanka Trump in her father’s seat at the Group of 20 summit in Hamburg, Germany, sparking criticism from those who felt the move was inappropriate.
But German Chancellor Angela Merkel brushed it off, saying it was perfectly normal.
Trump tweeted Monday, “When I left Conference Room for short meetings with Japan and other countries, I asked Ivanka to hold seat. Very standard. Angela M agrees!”
Trump also tweeted, “If Chelsea Clinton were asked to hold the seat for her mother,as her mother gave our country away, the Fake News would say CHELSEA FOR PRES!”
Angela Merkel defended Ivanka Trump being seated at a leader’s table after her father stepped out of a meeting during the G20 summit.
The 35-year-old former fashion model sat down next to Xi Jinping, Angela Merkel and Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Hamburg, diplomats and the White House confirmed.
The incident fuelled allegations of nepotism against the US leader, who has put family members in top White House positions.
The official emphasised that “when other leaders stepped out, their seats were also briefly filled by others”.
Merkel sought to play down the case, saying that it is “in line with what other delegations do” and that Ivanka is engaged in “certain White House initiatives”.
But Trump’s already vociferous detractors were enraged.
Historian Anne Applebaum took to Twitter to denounce what she described “an unelected, unqualified, unprepared New York socialite” being seen as “the best person to represent American national interests.”
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