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100 Days of Power: The Rising Status of Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner

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WASHINGTON -- Ever since she took center stage at the Republican National Convention, it has been hard to ignore the rising political status of Ivanka Trump. 

She has been right by the president's side for a number of prominent events, including his meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

In mid-March, a White House official confirmed to CBN News Ivanka was getting her own West Wing office. 
 
After growing criticism about her presence at official, high priority events without an official title, the White House decided to make some changes. 

By late March, the first daughter accepted an unpaid position as a senior advisor to the president. 

She has since been on hand for key events such as the release of an Egyptian-American prisoner and the president's phone call to the international space station.

Political insiders say Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, were influential in that prisoner's release.  

She was also present at the W20 Summit in Germany, where she faced criticism from the audience and a German journalist about her father. 

The Many Roles of Jared Kushner

Jake Sherman of the political news magazine, Politico, said Kushner has also taken on quite a bit of responsibility since the inauguration. 

"I think it's fascinating to see how many roles Jared Kushner has had," said Sherman. "The president has put him in charge of China, negotiating a Middle East peace accord."

"He's reinventing -- his words -- reinventing government, and re-imagining government bureaucracy," he continued. "He's taking meeting on criminal justice reform. He has been in charge of White House hiring." 

"This is a lot for five people to do," Sherman added.

There is no doubt that the moderate and former Democrat and her husband have the ear of the president. This led some to say she should use that power to sway the president in a different direction. 

SNL Labels Ivanka 'Complicit'
 
NBC's "Saturday Night Live" poked fun at her position in a parody advertisement. In the commercial, actress Scarlett Johansson plays Ivanka Trump who is selling a perfume called "Complicit" -- meaning, the first daughter is partly responsible for her father's actions... good or bad. 
 
The first daughter responded to those accusations in an interview with CBS News' Gayle King. 
  
"If being complicit is wanting to be a force for good and to make a positive impact, then I'm complicit. I don't know if the critics that say that of me found themselves in this unique situation that I am now in would do any differently than I am doing," she said.  
 
It's a unique and influential position that is growing more powerful by the day. 


 

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About The Author

Amber C.
Strong

Amber Strong joined the CBN News team in Washington, D.C., in 2014 as a producer and field producer. Currently, she works as a correspondent, producer, and backup anchor for "The Brody File." Her beat includes national politics and The White House. And while she loves her current backyard of Washington, D.C., she’s a Hoosier girl at heart. Amber lives and breathes all things entertainment and politics and has had the privilege of interviewing some of the biggest names in both industries, including late night host Jimmy Fallon and presidential contender Rick Santorum. However, her true love is