Trump defends Ivanka’s G20 seat, takes shot at Hillary Clinton’s daughter

Ivanka Tiffany Trump — Ivanka Trump and Tiffany Trump applaud at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. July 20, 2016. Reuters/Jim Young

US President Donald Trump has defended Ivanka Trump’s seat at the G20 summit and even got Chelsea Clinton involved. The first daughter was spotted sitting in the president’s seat between British Prime Minister Theresa May and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

"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!" Trump tweeted. In a separate tweet, he called the arrangement "very standard.” German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who hosted the G20 summit, agreed, saying Ivanka belongs to the US delegation.

Hillary Clinton’s daughter has responded. She said it would never have occurred to her parents to ask her.

According to Bloomberg, an official watching the session said that Ivanka took her father’s place at the table on two occasions on Saturday. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Turkey’s President Recip Tayyip Erdogan were also seated near Ivanka as shown in a Twitter photo by the Russian sherpa to the G20, Svetlana Lukash, who wrote that Ivanka “replaces Pres Trump at the #G20 table as he leaves for bilateral meetings.”

An Ivanka spokesperson said she was in the back of the room and sat in the main table momentarily when the POTUS stepped out. “World Bank President Jim Yong Kim addressed the session, on 'Partnership With Africa, Migration and Health,' an area that would benefit from a facility that Ivanka Trump and the World Bank had announced shortly before the meeting,” the spokesman added.

US ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley also defended the president's daughter, pointing that Ivanka had sat in on meetings with her and Trump. She is usually involved in talks about women and business.

G20 leaders are allowed to bring staff into the room, and when government heads need to step out during some sessions, their places can be briefly taken by others. Ivanka serves as an unpaid adviser to the president and has an office in the West Wing of the White House.

But former World Bank official Lawrence Summers said it was rare for government leaders to leave during major summits. When they need to, senior government officials or foreign ministers usually fill in.

Ivanka also took part in a World Bank event on a fund for women entrepreneurs. Trump praised her work and expressed how proud he was of his daughter. Later in the meeting, Melania reportedly joined the US delegation in the room.

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