Ivanka has built 'alternate reality' in which her father never became president: op-ed

In the wake of her father's tumultuous term as president, Ivanka Trump's Instagram feed has become an "alternate reality" that shows a world that pretends Donald Trump's presidency had never existed, Slate's Greg Olear wrote Friday.

"Given that she was a registered Democrat in 2016, Ivanka could have elected not to participate in her father’s campaign. Instead, she and her husband lent their full-throated support," Olear writes.

"She introduced him when he formally announced his candidacy. She endorsed him. She made appearances on his behalf. She did radio ads for him. She gave the speech at the RNC just before his. She did not waiver in her support even after the Access Hollywood tape dropped."

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Olear rattles off a list of infamous incidents that took place during her father's tenure where she stood by and said nothing — the Muslim ban, her silence in regards to the Women's March, the sexual assault scandal surrounding then-SCOTUS nominee Brett Kavanaugh, the mishandling of the pandemic — all things that make Olear question how strong "the hold her bestial pops has on her."

And yet, on her Instagram page, she's trying to reinvent herself into a life in which that past few years haven't happened, he wrote. Pictures show her at music concerts, relaxing by pools, enjoying her children.

"The captions, when they appear, are well written, thoughtful, gracious, kind. There is nary of whiff of humblebragging. Gratitude oozes from every post, from every “story.” This is someone living the good life, who feels sincerely blessed to be living that good life. The woman on this Instagram page loves her friends (what few of them appear, what few of them remain). She loves her children. She loves, supports, is proud of her husband."

But Olear added, "Ivanka’s Instagram feed is an alternate reality. It’s what her life would have been like if her loutish old man had never been president, had lost in 2016, had never gone into politics, had never sold himself to the Russian mob, had dropped dead of a massive coronary on the set of Home Alone 2. This is a rose-colored fantasy world she’s trying so hard to make real. If she didn’t care about the public perception of her, why would she bother?"

He added, "The tragedy in all of this is that Ivanka speaking out against Donald would have mattered. Ivanka speaking out would have had real power. Ivanka speaking out would have saved lives," writes Olear.

Olear acknowledges that Ivanka would have paid a hefty price if she spoke out against her "petty, vengeful" father, but the price of staying silent was much more.

Read the full op-ed over at Slate.