by Itunuoluwa Adebo
Ivanka Trump’s Berlin trip has a jam-packed day, including panel appearances and dinner with Merkel. This is her first international trip since her father assumed office. Merkel invited Ivanka Trump on this trip, and is indicating the importance of US-German relations, perhaps solidifying the country’s fledgling relationship with the Trump administration after a rocky start.
When she was asked about her role in her father’s administration and whether she represented her father, the American people or “your business” she said she was “rather unfamiliar with his role … as it is quite new to me.” “I’m listening, I’m learning, I’m defining the ways in which I think I’ll be able to have impact.”
The participants, including Merkel, Queen Màxima of the Netherlands, and International Monetary Fund director Christine Lagarde.
She was later asked if the President was an “empowerer of women” given some of his past comments. Ivanka Trump brushed aside any concerns. Members of the audience hissed and booed when Trump began describing her father as an advocate for women.
Ivanka Trump gets a frosty reception at women's panel in Berlin — @joejohnscnn has the details https://t.co/ApQcSe80nu
— CNN News Central (@NewsCentralCNN) April 25, 2017
“I know from personal experience, and I think the thousands of women who have worked with and for my father for decades when he was in the private sector are a testament to his belief and solid conviction in the potential of women and their ability to do the job as well as any man,” she replied. Following the panel, she will tour Siemens Technik Akademie, where she will speak with program apprentices.
