Why You Can’t Underestimate the Power of Ivanka Trump
If Hillary Clinton thinks that she already got this election under her belt, she might want to think again. Donald Trump didn’t call his daughter a ‘secret weapon’ for no reasons.
“I love you, Ivanka!”, shouted one of the audience sitting in the front row at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland during her big speech on July 21st 2016.
Ivanka Trump has been a household name for over a decade now. You might recognize her from her modelling career, her jewelry line, or her appearance on the TV show ‘The Apprentice’, but first and foremost, you might know her as Donald Trump’s ‘favorite daughter’. During his numerous presidential rallies and campaigns, Donald has mentioned his admiration towards his daughter, even dubbing her as his ‘secret weapon’. Ivanka is an Ivy League graduate that successfully serves her role as an executive vice president of the Trump Organization. She’s an accomplished businesswoman that has led various projects for Trump Organization while building her own lifestyle brand in the same time. She’s a qualified and eloquent public speaker that many Republican delegates adore.
If you have been paying a good attention to this year’s American presidential election, you must have realized that Ivanka Trump has performed various significant roles in Donald Trump’s campaign. Ivanka is more than just a daddy’s little girl, standing on the corner of the podium looking sweet and pretty. She’s one of her father’s most influential adviser. The rumors are now circulating that Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner have significant votes on the firing of Donald’s former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski. She’s also the one that keeps urging Donald to tone-down and soften his approach in campaigning. Ivanka’s opinions contain real weight, her thought matters, and Donald listens to her.
Besides being his top adviser, Ivanka plays a significant role as the campaign ‘neutralizer’. 2016 American Presidential Election has been one of the most entertaining elections in recent memory. It has been an unpredictable mayhem, a circus arena, mostly due to various outrageous and offensive remarks Donald Trump has made. Ivanka is one of the Trump’s kids that really knows how to counterbalance the extremity that his father shows. According to Michael Kruse, senior writer from Politico Magazine, the thing that makes Ivanka’s presence so important is because “she is a combination of things that both flatter Trump and help make up for what he lacks”.
Donald Trump has often been seen as a crass narcissists. Ivanka Trump on the other hand, constantly radiates elegance, grace, and finesse on every public events or exclusive interviews. She still displays these qualities even when the reporters started to ask tricky and cornering questions regarding Trump’s controversy-baiting behavior. She’s her father’s ultimate ‘defender’.
One thing that should be highlighted when it comes to her powerful role as the ‘defender’ is that she knows how to maintain her composure and rationality when delivering the task given. She’s not afraid to dodge the questions and gracefully ask reporters to just keep some of the questions to Donald. ‘You would have to ask him’, Ivanka replied when Nancy Cordes from CBS asked her about how Donald will change female voters’ unfavorable view on him. She sometimes even answers those burning-hot/uncomfortable questions about her father’s controversial remarks and use that as the opportunity to highlight Donald’s admirable and widely known qualities, like his negotiation skill or his fierce determination. She’s a seasoned pro when it comes to handling media scrutiny. Her demeanor makes her the current media darling. The Daily Beast dubbed her ‘the smartest Trump of them all’ , CBS called her ‘nothing like her father’ (which is a huge compliment, by the way), and even the Twitter-sphere wants her to run for president.
Ivanka knows how to clean up the mess her father made with such dignity, and with this approach, she still managed to maintain her credibility as the main go-to source of information about Donald Trump, even the most skeptical Trump haters would still want to hear.
Ivanka is also viewed as the woman in Trump’s camp that has the power to help Donald scoop more support from American female voters. During this presidential campaign, Donald Trump developed an image as a ‘sexist’, mostly after derogatory remarks he’s made about Carly Fiorina or Megyn Kelly.
Washington Post-ABC News poll in January 2016 shows that 59% of American female voters give unfavorable rating for him. While on the other side of the spectrum, Ivanka Trump is an outspoken feminist that celebrates working women through her initiative #WomenWhoWork. Roger Stone, one of Donald Trump’s political consultant stated that “Ivanka is the campaign’s greatest asset when it comes to woman voters”.
Ivanka firmly stands on her statement that Trump is not a sexist. She backs her statement with numerous facts, including the fact that there are more female executives compare to the male execs in Trump organization. She also mentioned that her father’s support for women are continuously reflected in his employment and hiring practices. To really make her point, she addressed this issue about ‘Trump vs women’ during her speech at Republican National Convention.
“As president, my father will change the labor laws that were put in place at a time when women were not a significant portion of the workforce. And he will focus on making quality child care affordable and accessible for all”, Ivanka proclaimed.
Leading to the big election in November, you can bet that Ivanka, a working mother herself, will be pushed to help create and spread a softer, more female-friendly image of Donald Trump.
Above all the roles she has played during the campaign, from adviser to defender to connector bridge between Trump and female voters, she ultimately still plays her role as Donald’s daughter just as swell. She repeatedly praised Donald for many good qualities he possessed, as a man, a father, and an entrepreneur. Like what Chelsea Clinton does to Hillary, Ivanka also try to humanize Donald, giving America a clear picture on how Trump act in a more private setting rather than reinforcing media depiction of Donald Trump as this villainous caricature.
Ivanka’s role in her father’s campaign will get bigger and more significant leading up to November 8th. She’s an important presence. She WILL gain significant support and vote for her father. Make no mistake, this article is not, by any means an endorsement for Donald Trump. This article was created in the first place to acknowledge the sheer power of Ivanka Trump in conquering the masses and dissecting her integral role in this year’s election. If you’re a Trump fan, Ivanka is a fantastic news, a priceless asset that might carry Donald all the way to a ginormous win. If you’re a Clinton supporter, I’m telling you, Ivanka is the one you should keep your eyes on:
“When Trump lies it’s bombastic and obvious. What’s dangerous about Ivanka is that when she lies, you want to believe her.” — Jessica Valenti, The Guardian
You see, I disagree with MANY things Donald Trump has stated. If there’s one thing I can agree with Donald, is his statement about Ivanka’s positive traits and her significance in this year’s election.
“Ivanka is highly intelligent and extremely talented, and I rely on her both for my company and my campaign” — Donald Trump
Ayip Fahmi is an analyst at Catalyst Strategy, the happiest workplace in Indonesia. His passion includes media, pop culture, qualitative research, and good Italian dinner.
