Ivanka, yet to do anything

Posted on: October 10, 2017 at 13:09:59 CT

More than six months since she formally joined President Donald Trump’s administration in March, the first daughter has yet to make her mark on any of the administration’s major policy decisions. Now she’s staking her reputation in Washington on making sure her father’s tax reform plan includes an expanded child tax credit – a version of a pet issue she championed during the campaign.

So far, Ivanka Trump’s approach has been markedly different than her past efforts in pushing policy, evidence of the way Washington has schooled her in her seven months in the West Wing, according to interviews with more than a dozen people, including White House officials, congressional aides, and conservative leaders and policy experts.

She’s embarked on an extensive outreach program to build support among influential Republicans – and attracted backing from Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida and Mike Lee of Utah by adopting parts of their proposal they introduced in 2015.

In recent weeks, the first daughter has done private calls and meetings with GOP lawmakers from both the Senate and House, right-leaning tax experts, business groups, think tanks, and social conservatives to build support: everyone from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to the Heritage Foundation, Republican Rep. Mark Meadows, and Democratic Rep. John Larson, according to a White House official.