Todd Bishop
US President Trump’s daughter Ivanka has become one of the hot topics of recent public opinion, and the disputes of interest behind this are not simple. Because of her height and voice, Trump has begun to check and balance the hawkish aides around her.
On July 11, the White House former National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor and former US President Barack Obama speech writer Ben Rhodes told Ivanka. The Pod Save The World podcast attacked and compared her to Claire Underwood, the villain who tried to become president in the popular American TV series “House of Cards.”
The anger of the two politicians against Ivanka stems from her recent high-profile performance. In June, Ivanka and husband Jared Kushner accompanied Donald Trump to attend the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan. During the meeting, Ivanka participated in Trump’s leadership with China. The important meeting of Xi Jinping and the speech on women’s rights and interests, when Trump took photos with the leaders of the world, firmly occupied the center of the picture.
Earlier, Ivanka and Kushner, as the “first daughter” high-profile accompanied by Trump at the conferences, received a lot of attention. Later, she announced that she would close her clothing brand and enter the White House as a presidential advisor. The question of public opinion.
American public opinion has always been “sorrowful” and believes that Trump brings the nepotism to the White House. The high-profile appearance of Ivanka at the G20 summit, the outside world has been criticizing this constantly, and Ivanka’s performance at the summit has embarrassed the United States. The Washington Post stated that Ivanka’s outstanding performance at the G20 summit showed Ivanka and Kushner’s influence on Trump and the absence of opposition figures in the White House.
In the opinion of analysts, Trump’s emphasis on Ivanka and Kushner not only reflects the absence of the opposition in the White House, but also reflects the existence of two conflicting interests in the White House.
There are three “factions” in the ruling team that reviewed Trump’s two-year term. First hardliners, including Steve Bannon, Peter Navarro, John Robert Bolton, etc. Second, military personnel, including Mike Flynn, Jim Mattis, HR McMaster and so on. Finally, there are “family factions” like Ivanka and Kushner.
In the past two years, Trump dismissed and publicly criticized many officials. The military generals basically left the Trump team. Although the hardliners retained some of the team, they gradually lost their sense of presence and voice in the White House. The most obvious example is the decline in the participation of Navarro and Bolton in international affairs.
Bolton and Navarro still had a certain say in the early 2018 Sino-US negotiations, but since Robert Lighthizer served as the main leader of the US, Bolton and Pompeo were in Sino-US trade negotiations. Obviously already marginalized, Kudlow is absent from the Osaka G20 trip. From this point of view, the momentum of the hardliners has begun to fall in the Trump administration.
Unlike hardliners, Ivanka and Kushner are still strong and rising. So far, Trump has never publicly criticized or denied Ivanka and Kushner. Kushner has even more than the Secretary of State’s right to speak on the Middle East.
It can be said that the couple are currently the only ones in the White House who have the right to speak.
Behind the power upgrade of the Ivanka couple is the extension of the Trump family’s power and the other checks and balances.
In the early days of the presidency, hard-line policies may have earned Trump a public eye. But as Trump needs to make a performance during his tenure, it is not realistic to implement a “good” policy. In addition, whether they are members of the military or hardliners, their purpose in entering the White House is to achieve personal political interests. Therefore, when initiating policies, personal political interests will always be their priority.
Under such circumstances, many of the tough or extreme policies they support, such as the hard-hitting trade war with China and the tough handling of the DPRK nuclear issue, may damage Trump’s short-term political interests.
To this end, Trump, who values family interests and trusts his family, has taken another route, the Ivanka route.
The Ivanka couple entered the White House. They did not work in the White House to achieve personal political ambitions or interests, just like the hardliners and military personnel. They used the opportunity to enter the White House to accumulate political prestige for the Trump family. The political foundation of the family.
In the Ivanka route, Trump and Ivanka will give priority to Trump’s personal interests and give priority to the Trump family. In order to counter and balance the hawkish sects, they are selfish and disregard the extreme line of Trump’s own and family prestige.
The Ivanka route is also centered on Kushner and Ivanka, adding neutralizers to the White House, advocating a pragmatic approach to dealing with China, and even accepting China’s economic power status, so that Trump avoids trade. The problem is hard-hitting with China, and it also helps Trump to ease the relationship with North Korea and even normalize.
The Ivanka route is a flexible card in the hands of Trump, paving the way for the Trump family’s “post-Trump era” and making him a possible route for the president’s political glory and interests to continue.
