"On
behalf of the United States government, I apologize to all visitors and
New Yorkers for the traffic," she told a group of thought leaders at
the Concordia Annual Summit Monday morning.
Trump
was in New York to promote her Women's Global Development and
Prosperity (W-GDP) initiative and to practice diplomacy on the world
stage, a role she's embraced with mixed reviews, hamstrung by her
father's mercurial tendencies and policies that are sometimes at odds with her objectives.
Trump formally unveiled the initiative -- part of her neatly tailored West Wing portfolio
-- earlier this year and has since traveled to Africa and South America
to promote it. Its aim, she told reporters before the President signed a
memorandum launching the initiative in February, is to "coordinate
efforts across federal agencies" to empower women in developing
countries through three pillars: education, entrepreneurship and
eliminating legal, regulatory and cultural barriers to women's economic
participation.
On Monday, Trump outlined the
initiative's three pillars, explained the five areas of law impacting
women in global economies, and touted some early successes advancing
women's rights in Cote d'Ivoire, where she visited in April. She spoke
in platitudes, using the phrases "delivering solutions," "collaborate
toward shared goals" and "advance the ball" all in one sentence.
"We're
leveraging our collective efforts through this initiative to change in
countries where there's not a level playing field," she said, calling
the women she's met through her work, including an Argentinian baker who
received assistance to purchase baking equipment for an at-home
business, "inspiring."
"I hope
that on these visits I also generate goodwill for the United States that
supports these programs, but really, the effect is on all of us who
work hard every day because we believe in this mission," she said.
President
Donald Trump recognized her work multiple times during his remarks
before world leaders at the UN, thanking her directly during a speech on
religious freedom Monday and referencing W-GDP during his address to
the General Assembly Tuesday.
"We
are also championing the role of women in our societies. Nations that
empower women are much wealthier, safer, and much more politically
stable," the President had said, calling it "vital" to national security
to "pursue women's economic development."
Ivanka
Trump also reflected Monday on what she's learned during her time in
government: "You need to coalition-build and ensure that there is
agreement in terms of the parameters, that all the stakeholders, whether
they be legislative, or administrative, or NGO, is excited about the
mission and the goal."
That
coalition-building has been key to Trump's time as a White House
official. Trump has built bipartisan relationships and navigated the
difficult terrain of Capitol Hill on the topics of tax reform and the
child tax credit, as well as paid family leave. She's also built rapport
abroad with key leaders, appearing in a high-visibility role alongside her father as
he made a historic trip to the Demilitarized Zone of North Korea in
June and attending multiple bilateral meetings at the G20 in Osaka.
In
New York this week, Trump has been present for the President's key
speeches. She also held "brief pull asides" of her own during the United
Nations General Assembly, according to a White House official, who
declined to elaborate on whom she met.
She's no stranger to the annual confab. Trump previously addressed a group at the UN during the 2017 general assembly on combating human trafficking as
a guest of then-British Prime Minister Theresa May, and also attended
multiple private meetings with world leaders, including the foreign
ministers of Australia and India. In 2018, she also attended the
Concordia Summit, where she discussed workforce development and previewed the creation of W-GDP for the first time. She also sat in on a bilateral meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in.
Back at the White House later in the week as impeachment strategy intensified, Ivanka Trump was focused elsewhere.
"The road to my heart is paved with pawprints," she tweeted Friday evening, alongside a photo holding two pups.
CLARIFICATION: The article headline has been updated to better reflect Ivanka Trump's role in the administration.
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