Ivanka Trump issues 3-sentence response to Trump indictment

Former President Donald Trump‘s eldest daughter Ivanka Trump has weighed in on her father’s criminal indictment in New York City.

In an unprecedented move, a grand jury tied to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s investigation of 2016 hush money payments to adult-film star Stormy Daniels voted to indict the former president on Thursday.

Ivanka Trump, who served as senior adviser in her father’s administration, has recently distanced herself from politics and vowed to not be involved in her father’s 2024 presidential campaign. She said in a statement posted to Instagram on Friday that the indictment “pained” her.

“I love my father, and I love my country,” she said. “Today, I am pained for both. I appreciate the voices across the political spectrum expressing support and concern.”

After the former president announced his third bid for the White House last year, Ivanka Trump said that she would “always love and support” her father but did “not plan to be involved in politics” moving forward. Her recent social media activity has been largely limited to posting photos of herself and her children.

She has also sought to distance herself from her father and brothers, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, in a civl fraud lawsuit filed by New York State Attorney General Letitia James against the Trump Organization.

Ivanka Trump’s brothers reacted to news of their father’s indictment almost immediately. Eric Trump described the indictment as “third world prosecutorial misconduct” in a tweet on Thursday.

Donald Trump Jr. denounced the move in multiple tweets, claiming it was an attempt to “interfere in the 2024 election to stop Trump.” He also described it as “Communist-level s***” on his Triggered podcast.

Ivanka Trump’s husband Jared Kushner, who also served as senior adviser in the Trump White House, reportedly suggested on Friday that the indictment was evidence Democrats “fear” the “political strength” of his father-in-law during a speech at the Future Investment Initiative summit in Florida.

“It’s been hard to watch the opponents of him politically continue to break every norm over the last years to try to get him,” Kushner said. “I’ve been by him during a lot of these instances and it’s only made him stronger, and his resolve to take on big challenges, to fight for change.”

Following Ivanka Trump’s statement, half of the former president’s closest family members remained silent about the indictment at the time of publication.

Former first lady Melania Trump has yet to publicly weigh in, although she was spotted smiling next to her husband at Mar-a-Lago on Thursday, shortly after he received the news.

The former president’s youngest daughter, 29-year-old Tiffany Trump, has also been silent, although she rarely participates in public life. His youngest son, 17-year-old Barron, does not speak publicly.

Newsweek has reached out via email to Donald Trump’s office for comment.