Did Donald Trump Come Between Ivanka And Chelsea Clinton's Friendship?
Bipartisan partnerships almost always end up in a disaster, but the same can't be said about the kids of politicians. Chelsea Clinton and Ivanka Trump happen to be prime examples of not letting politics ruin a friendship — or at least it used to be that way.
Chelsea and Ivanka never ran in the same social circles when they were younger and surprisingly only met through their husbands. Marc Mezvinsky and Jared Kushner apparently knew each other from having worked in finance, and after frequent double dates with their wives, Chelsea and Ivanka hit it off. "They have been out together, they have been on a double date with their husbands," Emily Heil, co-author of The Washington Post's "Reliable Source" column, told CNN. "There's so much that they understand about each other. If there's anyone who understands what Chelsea Clinton has been through it is Ivanka Trump." Chelsea even once compared Ivanka to her dad, telling Vogue that the former White House advisor was always aware of the people in her environment. "It's an awareness that in some ways reminds me of my dad, and his ability to increase the joy of the room," she said.
For the most part, Chelsea and Ivanka have been quiet about their friendship, but that all changed when Chelsea's mom, Hillary Clinton, and Ivanka's dad, Donald Trump, went head to head for the big chair in the Oval Office. What used to be a relationship unmarred by politics came crumbling down.
Donald Trump said he wished Chelsea and Ivanka weren't friends
Before Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton became political rivals, they were pretty good friends. In fact, the Clintons were even invited to Trump's wedding to Melania. But when they ran for President of the United States a decade later — things turned sour. They cut ties with one another, with Trump even making it clear that he didn't want his daughter Ivanka Trump to remain friends with Chelsea Clinton.
"You know, Chelsea likes Ivanka and Ivanka likes Chelsea. I wish they didn't like each other but they do," he said, according to Us Weekly at a 2016 rally in Denver. "It's easier if they don't like each other. You would think that relationship would be strained, but they like each other!" Even Chelsea and Ivanka themselves maintained that their friendship was deeper than politics.
"Our friendship started before politics, so it will last beyond politics," Chelsea told E! News a few days before the 2016 elections, acknowledging they had agreed to disagree regarding their political beliefs. "We clearly have different views about what we think is the right answer and the right direction for our country, so I'm going to do everything I can to support my mom between now and when the polls close on Tuesday." Ivanka echoed the same sentiment and brushed off rumors of a falling out. "I still consider her a very close friend, and she considers me as well. We have a great relationship," she shared with Harper's Bazaar that same year. "I'm not running for public office, and neither is she, so of course we're still friends."
Chelsea Clinton disagrees with Ivanka's brand of politics
When Donald Trump won the presidency, it didn't take long until Chelsea Clinton and Ivanka Trump's friendship did a 180. In a 2018 appearance on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," Chelsea made it clear that their opposing views were what led to the demise of their BFF-ship. "I have not spoken to her in a long time. ... It's clear, though, that she has supported policies and decisions that I don't agree with," she clarified, or subtly shaded Ivanka, depending on how you look at it. "I think anyone who works for the president should expect to be scrutinized for whatever decisions not only he or she is making, but whatever decisions the White House is making on any given day," Chelsea dished.
She went into further detail about their falling out in a 2020 guesting on "Watch What Happens Live," telling Andy Cohen that the last time they spoke was in 2016 and that she doesn't see them reuniting anytime soon. "I have no interest in being friends with someone who is not only complicit but actively taking part in this administration's everyday collision of cruelty and incompetence. So, that's the answer," she said.
And now that Ivanka has turned her back on politics, Chelsea's feelings toward her remained the same. "She is not the person I called when I was curious about something for my kids or if I was debating a life decision," she told Andy Cohen in 2022. "But we were definitely friends... and then she went to the dark side."