Ivanka Trump says she won’t be taking over the duties of First Lady—at least officially—and said questions about her position as a senior political adviser to her father border on “sexism.”
So now that we’re a day away from the new administration taking office, who will be playing the part of First Lady?
Speaking to Deborah Roberts in a preview for a 20/20 interview set to air Thursday night, Ivanka said she will continue to serve an informal role in her father’s White House, and that the official First Lady remains her step-mother, Melania.
“There is one First Lady, and she’ll do remarkable things,” Ivanka says in the clip. When Roberts asked whether Ivanka thought questions about her potential role as a surrogate First Lady were sexist, Roberts said Ivanka replied, “I think it’s an inappropriate observation.”
But with Melania absent, staying in New York to help Barron Trump, who is in grammar school, the First Lady’s offices in the East Wing are noticeably barren, with nearly two dozen jobs unfilled.
Aside from her roles as the chief surrogate for her husband, and as the official White House fine china selector, the First Lady oversees the social and ceremonial aspect of the Presidency, helping to plan and execute state dinners, welcoming and entertaining foreign dignitaries, overseeing the White House’s household staff, and ensuring that the “People’s House,” as a national landmark, is properly preserved.
So far, the Trump Administration is behind on staffing the East Wing. When Barack Obama took office, his appointed Social Secretary had already been on the job for weeks, managing the incoming First Family’s move and planning the Obamas’ first State dinner, as well as the swearing-in ceremony for newly approved Cabinet members.
Melania, however, has only recently begun even considering candidates for the job. The Trump White House announced only Wednesday that there was a Social Secretary candidate under consideration. Sources close to the transition team also tell Heat Street that Melania has not named a Chief of Staff or communications director for East Wing offices.
The current East Wing staff director did not reply to a request for comment on how the transition is proceeding, but one former staffer did tell the Washington Post that the team is “way, way behind.”
“The governors’ dinner is at the end of February. It’s like a state dinner. It’s very formal and takes a lot of planning,” the anonymous staffer claimed. The upcoming State of the Union and the White House Easter Egg Roll are also on the agenda and require immediate attention.
During the transition, Melania tapped longtime friend and Met Costume Institute Gala planner Stephanie Winston Wolkoff to help with the social and ceremonial aspects of the Inauguration. Trump transition sources said they weren’t sure if Wolkoff would be open to taking on the role permanently.
Meanwhile, questions do remain as to what role Ivanka will play in the Trump administration. Her husband, Jared Kushner, is preparing to become Trump’s official senior adviser, and while the whole family has relocated to DC, Ivanka has completely departed her namesake clothing and accessories company.
Ivanka’s close friend, Dina Powell, will join the administration to help shape its small business policy, which is where Ivanka says she’d prefer to exert her influence.
It’s also clear that Ivanka wants her own space in DC; despite plenty of room in the President’s official residence (even Donald may not live in the White House full time), Ivanka and Jared chose to relocate to their own single family home in a posh DC suburb.
Sharing the role of First Lady would not be unprecedented. In recent years, the First Lady has been a visible presence, but historically, she has been a quiet confidante rather than a policy activist. Presidents’ adult children have occasionally taken on the First Lady role, though none in recent memory. Melania could do the planning aspect of the role from afar, with the use of technology, while Ivanka becomes the “softer” face of Donald Trump’s White House.
It’s not as if this would be the Trump White House’s first break with tradition, either.