The co-hosts of ABC’s The View didn’t hold back their skepticism regarding former First Daughter Ivanka Trump’s claim of facing “undue hardship” in her attempt to avoid attending her father’s civil trial in New York City. Despite a judge already dismissing her argument, the hosts dedicated a significant portion of their show to dismantling Ivanka’s justification.
Ivanka received a subpoena, mandating her appearance in court to testify in the civil fraud trial of her father, former President Donald Trump. While she managed to delay her court appearance, her efforts to completely evade the trial were met with criticism. Citing her residence in Florida with her three children, Ivanka’s attorney argued that traveling to NYC “in the middle of a school week” would pose “undue hardship.”
The panel, however, found this argument unconvincing. Co-host Ana Navarro led the charge, expressing her lack of sympathy for Ivanka’s predicament. Navarro highlighted her own frequent travel between Miami and New York without the luxuries of a private jet or billions from foreign entities. Notably, Ivanka had recently attended Kim Kardashian’s Beverly Hills birthday party, casting doubt on her claims of hardship.
Navarro also pointed out that Ivanka traveled extensively during her White House tenure, even when her children were younger, raising questions about her sudden concerns over parenting obligations. Co-host Sara Haines echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the stark contrast between Ivanka’s past international travels and her current reluctance to attend the trial. Haines found Ivanka’s reasoning both tone-deaf and insulting.
Co-host Sunny Hostin shared her theory, suggesting that Ivanka might be positioning herself as the unscathed member of the Trump Family Crime Organization. Hostin emphasized the potential legal implications, highlighting that in a civil case, pleading the Fifth Amendment could protect her from self-incrimination in potential criminal proceedings. Given her previous involvement in various Trump Organization matters, her testimony could potentially lead to unexpected legal consequences.
I’m sorry, Ivanka gets absolutely no sympathy from me, and I think from most American women who have to, and men, who have to balance all sorts of duties… Girl, I fly back and forth between Miami and New York at least twice a week, and I don’t have a private jet or a $2 billion from the Saudis. Yeah. So I think you can do it for one day.
She traveled all over the world when she was at the White House and the children were even smaller. And also, don’t these children have a father that can take care of them on a school day?
Co-host Sara Haines took that point even further:
[A]ll I could think about is the globetrotting she did when she had her position in the White House. She’d go for seven to nine days. … This because it’s during the week of school. The kids go to full-time school. When she was traveling the world, one of them was at home and one years old. I just don’t understand her reasoning. It’s tone deaf. And I also find, like you said, though, it’s insulting.
But co-host Sunny Hostin has a theory on why Ivanka is suddenly playing “Mother of the Year”:
When you think about the Trump Family Crime Organization, the one person — I mean, I just call things like I see them — the one person that seems to be unscathed in it is Ivanka Trump, right? …
She has never really been implicated. And so in a civil case, you can plead the Fifth because if something that you say can and will be against you in a criminal case, you don’t want to testify. She would have to testify… If she testifies and she was somewhat involved in any way… We saw her on The Apprentice. She was getting off the helicopter with the boys, too. She could say something that could now lead to criminal liability.
