film / tv / substack / social media / lists / web / celeb / pajiba love / misc / about / cbr
film / tv / substack / web / celeb

ivanka-trump-cosmo.jpeg

Ivanka Trump Gets Waylaid In What She Probably Thought Was a Friendly Interview

By Dustin Rowles | Politics | September 15, 2016 |

By Dustin Rowles | Politics | September 15, 2016 |


I’m sure, after her father unveiled a new regressive child care and maternity leave policy, that Ivanka Trump thought she could float into the picture momentarily, radiate her secretly liberal warmth all over the media, and escape unscathed. She even lined up an interview with Cosmo, and in an election when Matt Lauer and cable news reporters aren’t even asking her father tough questions, why would anyone expect Cosmo to call Ivanka Trump out on her Dad’s bullshit?

Ivanka Trump may have seriously underestimated Cosmo, because their interviewer, Prachi Gupta, wasn’t interested in soft-pedaling a child-care plan that basically only benefits the wealthy and middle class, and a maternity leave policy that doesn’t take into account modern families.

Ivanka got testy, and Gupta set the tone by first pointedly asking Ivanka why Donald is only introducing a plan now, a year after Hillary first introduced hers (during the unveiling, Donald falsely stated that Hillary had not yet introduced a plan). Ivanka ignored the implication of the question, and offered a canned answer detailing the plan.

Then Prachi Gupta jabbed right:

So I’m wondering, why does this policy not include any paternity leave?

[The maternity care plan is] critical for the health of the mother. It’s critical for bonding with the child, and that was a top focus of this plan.

Then she jabbed left:

OK, so when it comes to same-sex—

So it’s meant to benefit, whether it’s in same-sex marriages as well, to benefit the mother who has given birth to the child if they have legal married status under the tax code.

Then she sunk her teeth in, and would not let go.

Well, what about gay couples, where both partners are men?

The policy is fleshed out online, so you can go see all the elements of it. But the original intention of the plan is to help mothers in recovery in the immediate aftermath of childbirth.

So I just want to be clear that, for same-sex adoption, where the two parents are both men, they would not be receiving special leave for that because they don’t need to recover or anything?

Well, those are your words, not mine. [Laughs.] Those are your words. The plan, right now, is focusing on mothers, whether they be in same-sex marriages or not.

$10 says that the “[Laughs]” was really “[smug uncomfortable laugh]”

Then Prachi Gupta goes in for the kill:

OK, I just wanted to make sure I understood. In 2004, Donald Trump said that pregnancy is an inconvenient thing for a business. It’s surprising to see this policy from him today. Can you talk a little bit about those comments, and perhaps what has changed?

So I think that you have a lot of negativity in these questions, and I think my father has put forth a very comprehensive and really revolutionary plan to deal with a lot of issues. So I don’t know how useful it is to spend too much time with you on this if you’re going to make a comment like that …

Oh wow! Five minutes into the interview, and Ivanka is already bloody and dazed, so bloody and dazed, in fact, that shortly thereafter, Ivanka jumped out of the ring, confused.

I’m going to jump off, I have to run. I apologize.

OK, well, thank you for your time.

Sounds good, thanks.

Why the haste, Ivanka? Is it because you don’t like to answer for your father’s backwards, sexist policies? Because if you campaign for him, you’re going to have to do a lot of that in the next eight weeks, and you’re going to have to spend the rest of your life living it down.

Source: Cosmo