Ivanka Trump has been circumspect in what she says about Donald Trump’s multiple criminal indictments, as she’s reportedly been trying to walk a tightrope between publicly distancing herself from her father’s alleged crimes and trying to signal her support for him — in case he gets re-elected president and she gets a chance to again have a prominent role in his administration.
But Ivanka Trump nonetheless found a way to unleash against her father’s prosecutors, ahead of his pleading not guilty Thursday in his criminal case in Georgia, charging him with efforts to interfere with the 2020 election results. Trump’s beloved oldest daughter did so without using her own words to slam the multiple investigations against him. Instead, she turned to a statement from a Miami-area pizzeria owner, sharing his comments in an Instagram Story post that she knows will soon be automatically deleted.
It’s also likely that Ivanka was attracted to the social media statement by David Mizrachi, the owner of Mizrachi’s Pizza Kitchen in Hollywood, Florida, because he also lavished praise on her, saying it was a “dream come true” to have her walk into his restaurant.
In his statement, Mizrachi wrote: “Yesterday afternoon we at Mizrachi’s Pizza Kitchen had the honor of having Ivanka Trump at our restaurant for lunch. What an amazing surprise to have someone that so many people love and adore in our establishment just randomly walk in …”
“She was kind, gracious and full of smiles,” Mizrachi continued. “I had the opportunity to talk to her and just let her know that we support her and her family during these ridiculous trials of her father and that we all know is a complete farce.”
Mizrachi added that Ivanka Trump “even cleaned her own table when she was done eating. WOW so humble and takes nothing for granted.” He then praised the 45th president, who was twice impeached and who faces 91 felony criminal counts across four jurisdictions, as being the paragon of virtue who instilled these values in Ivanka Trump. He said Trump “appreciates the God-given gifts he was given and taught his children to be the same. It was truly a dream come true for me. God bless America.”
In her Instagram Story post, Ivanka said nothing about Mizrachi’s comments about her father’s criminal charges. Instead, she benignly wrote, with an accompany pizza emoji: “My son Theo knows his pizzas and agrees yours was amazing!”
One possible reason that Ivanka Trump has offered few comments about her father’s criminal charges is that she and her husband were subpoenaed in January by the special counsel to testify about his efforts to stay in power after the 2020 election and about his role in allegedly encouraging a pro-Trump mob to attack the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Earlier this year, when Trump was indicted in New York City on state charges related to his hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels, Ivanka Trump carefully said, “I love my father, and I love my country. Today, I am pained for both. I appreciate the voices across the political spectrum expressing support and concern.”
For a time after Trump left the White House, Ivanka Trump was seen to be distancing herself from her father, both socially and politically. But in recent months, news outlets have logged the ways that the former socialite and entrepreneur has been willing to be seen with her father, at least socially.
As the fourth criminal indictment was looming in Georgia earlier this month, Ivanka and Kushner made sure to be seen at the LIV golf tournament Trump hosted at his golf course in Bedminster, New Jersey. As shown in photos published by the Daily Mail, the couple made multiple appearances at the golf tournament, including at an event where they joined the former president.
Trump advisers also told Vanity Fair writer Gabriel Sherman that Ivanka and Kushner have been more visible lately in Trump circles, stoking speculation that the pair are gearing up to take an active role in his 2024 campaign.
They had been living at their cottage on the grounds of Bedminster this summer, sources said. Last month Ivanka attended her father’s birthday dinner, and she and Kushner were guests at an elite MAGA event hosted by Trump: the private screening of the child-trafficking movie “Sound of Freedom” at Bedminster. There, they mingled with the film’s QAnon-promoting star, Jim Caviezel, and such MAGA stars as former Trump strategist Steve Bannon and newscaster-turned-election denier Kari Lake.
“They’ve been spotted more frequently this summer,” a top campaign strategist said to Vanity Fair about Ivanka and Kushner. “They’ve made it clear they’re supportive. They pop into meetings to say hi.”
Ivanka and Kusher’s decision to back away from Trump after he lost the 2020 election seemed like a smart career move at the time, Sherman said. But Ivanka and Kushner have been been closer to Trump this summer, as the former president has solidified support among Republican voters.
Sources told Sherman there is only one reason that the couple would be so engaged, and it’s not entirely due to family loyalty: “Now that the president is 40 points ahead, of course Jared is pretending he’s involved,” a former Trump administration official told Vanity Fair. “If (Trump) is president again, Jared needs to protect his turf, especially in the Middle East.”
The onslaught of legal threats could keep Ivanka Trump from offering a loud and public denunciation of efforts to prosecute her father. As Sherman wrote, she and Kushner “are are highly protective of their brands and likely would not want to be publicly associated with Trump if he were to be convicted on federal or state charges.” But if Trump manages to win re-election to the White House, Kushner and Ivanka wouldn’t want to be left out. “Everyone loves a winner!” a former Trump 2020 campaign adviser told Sherman.