Will Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner ever make it back into the ‘it’ crowd? 4 ways they’re being shunned, from a Gossip Girl snub and angry neighbours to an unimpressed Meghan McCain
Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump have been shunned by various elite circles in the US. Photo: @ivankatrump/Instagram
When the Trump presidency came to an end, Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner slinked away from the limelight and have kept a relatively low profile since then. The former advisers to Trump, who were once nicknamed “the interns” during their time at the White House, were largely shunned by New York’s elite circles, where they once reigned supreme, due to their outsize political baggage.
Though Javanka seem to be angling a return to A-list society given a recent appearance at a star-studded fashion show, the couple has faced intense blowback from celebrity, political and fashion circles alike.
From sister-in-law Karlie Kloss to Republican Meghan McCain, here’s a look at the various people distancing themselves from the polarising couple …
The fashion crowd
Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump. Photo: @ivankatrump/Instagram
In November 2021, Ivanka and Jared attended a Louis Vuitton fashion show in Miami, Florida, which honoured late fashion designer Virgil Abloh. The pair also attended a presentation from the brand in 2019; at the time, Bernard Arnault, the founder and chairman of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, made a point of saying he separated politics from business, according to The New York Times.
The couple was spotted mingling during the pre-show of Abloh’s remembrance, and even snagged front row seats at the show, which also hosted stars like Kim Kardashian, former presidential candidate Kanye West, Pharrell Williams and Bella Hadid, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Though noticeably, there were no snaps of them with any of the big stars who attended the show …
In a New York Times report in November 2020, fashion designer Batsheva Hay said the following about the couple’s future in the fashion world: “No one is going to lend Ivanka clothing – she’ll have to buy it covertly at retail.”
Small screen bosses
Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner made an appearance on an episode of Gossip Girl in 2010. Photo: @lorlor_O22/Twitter
Melania Trump is not the only member of the family with cringey on-screen cameos. Before her family ventured into politics, Ivanka and Jared appeared on Gossip Girl back in the day in 2010. The couple starred in the show’s fourth season in an episode titled Easy J, as a nod to their reputation among the New York City elite.
However, producer Joshua Safran said they would “definitely not” be welcome to make a cameo on the reboot in an interview with The Daily Beast in July 2021, noting that times had changed since they brought star power to the show more than 10 years ago. “At the time, they were just sorta-celebrities. Trump was a bad real estate mogul, but I don’t think any of us saw what was coming,” said Safran.
Ivanka’s famous sister-in-law, Karlie Kloss
Karlie Kloss attended the US Open in 2016 along with Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner. Photo: @davidgeffen/Instagram
Karlie Kloss and Ivanka have been seen enjoying tennis with their respective husbands, Joshua and Jared Kushner. But the model has made it clear that she doesn’t agree with her sister-in-law’s political views, and has publicly shunned the former White House adviser in public multiple times.
Kloss – who says she voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Joe Biden in 2020 – condemned the Trump White House in a tweet and even told a follower she had “tried” to talk some sense into Ivanka and Jared. Late last year, the model told WSJ. Magazine that it was so tough being associated with her in-laws that she’d had to develop a “thick skin” to cope with flak she received from fans online as a result.
Ivanka, on the other hand, has regularly been a cheerleader for Kloss – posting about how proud she is of the Project Runway star.
Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner. Photo: @ivankatrump/Instagram
As if one term of Donald Trump’s presidency hadn’t already ruined Jared and Ivanka’s reputation, with the likes of former friend Chelsea Clinton distancing herself, the Capitol insurrection on January 6, 2021 pushed even more people away. After Ivanka described the people attacking the government building and police officers as “American patriots” in a now-deleted tweet, she lost her chance of schmoozing around Washington DC with fellow Republicans. It’s no wonder she relocated to Florida with her family.
Former first daughter of Arizona, Meghan McCain, continued her criticism of Ivanka late last year when she blasted Donald’s daughter for showing up to the funeral of her father, the late Senator John McCain, in 2018. The former host of The View insisted that the pair showed up uninvited and also said on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Livewith Andy Cohen that they had “no goddamn business” attending her father’s funeral. Ouch.
Their billionaire neighbours
Jared Kushner, Ivanka Trump and their children. Photo: @ivankatrump/Instagram
Jared and Ivanka snapped up a US$24 million waterfront mansion and US$30 million empty lot on Florida’s Indian Creek Island in 2020. However, after the US Capitol attack, it was reported many of their new neighbours on the island dubbed “Billionaire Bunker” had objected to them becoming members of the island’s country club, according to Page Six.
Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner’s Florida estate costs up to US$24 million. Photo: Realtor.com
Some of their neighbours include NFL quarterback Tom Brady and his supermodel wife Gisele Bündchen, as well as Spanish singer Julio Iglesias. But the club, associated with the Miami island, which has only 29 homes, has a controversial history. It only allowed a handful of Jewish people and people of colour to become members, and it also has a high initiation fee of US$150,000, reports Page Six.
The former advisers to Donald Trump snagged front row seats at Virgil Abloh’s Louis Vuitton remembrance show, along with Kim Kardashian, Kanye West and Bella Hadid
The pair have a mansion on Florida’s Indian Creek Island, dubbed ‘Billionaire Bunker’ where NFL’s Tom Brady and Julio Iglesias also live, but not all residents are happy to see them
