#UnwantedIvanka: Trump's G-20 appearance spawns historical parodies

OSAKA, Japan — Social media users have seized on an awkward moment at last weekend's G-20 summit in which the president's daughter, Ivanka Trump, appeared to try to insert herself into a conversation between world leaders in Osaka.

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A 19-second clip of the encounter went viral after it was shared on social media over the weekend by France's Elysée Palace. In the clip, Trump appears to try to join a conversation between French President Emmanuel Macron, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, British Prime Minister Theresa May and International Monetary Fund Chairwoman Christine Lagarde.

Lagarde, who stood to Trump's right in the video, blinked several times as Trump spoke.

An unidentified White House official pushed back against critics who accused the first daughter of interjecting in the conversation, telling The New York Times that the clip was recorded at a women's empowerment event at which Trump had been invited to speak.

White House spokeswoman Jessica Ditto told the Times the clip was a "misrepresentation" of the encounter and slammed criticism of the incident as "absolutely pathetic."

The encounter drew immediate criticism on social media, with some, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., calling Trump's appearance at the summit inappropriate.

"It may be shocking to some, but being someone's daughter actually isn't a career qualification," Ocasio-Cortez wrote on Twitter after video of the incident was posted online.

The encounter spawned the hashtag #UnwantedIvanka on Twitter, where it was used to tag historical photos edited to include the first daughter.

Trump has faced criticism before for her attempts at statecraft. She drew scrutiny after taking her father's place in 2017 at a meeting during that year's G-20 summit in Hamburg, Germany. White House officials dismissed the criticism at the time as overblown.

Cox Media Group