Ivanka Trump Says She Wants To Create ‘Economic Opportunity’ In Latin America, Amid Immigration Controversies
Senior White House adviser and President Donald Trump’s daughter, Ivanka Trump, announced today via Twitter that she wants to create “economic opportunity” in Latin America, Yahoo News reports.
Ivanka’s comments come in a strange time, considering her father Donald has recently been under intense scrutiny due to his “zero tolerance” immigration policy. In particular, the President and his administration have been – for the better part bipartisanly – criticized for the family separation policy.
As Vox recently reported, as a matter of immigration policy, the U.S. was separating families who seek asylum in the country. Between October 1, 2017 and May 31, 2018, at least 2,700 children have been separated from their parents. Upon being separated from their parents, children were typically designated as “unaccompanied alien children,” and sent to government custody.
On June 20, as the New York Times reported, President Trump officially ended the policy with an executive order, succumbing to political and public pressure. Still, the NYT noted, the damage has been done and thousands will remain separated.
Family separation at the border has been occupying the headlines of national and world media for the past couple of weeks, so Ivanka Trump’s recent Twitter comments come just as the scandal is starting to blow over. Ivanka, she wrote, has already taken steps to “create economic opportunity” in Latin America.
I agree w/ the many people, on the Left and Right, arguing that we must help foster stability in Central + South America by helping create economic oppportunity. #2XAmericas was launched in Peru this May in furtherance of this important goal. @opicgov @StateDept @USAID https://t.co/GmZcv2swei
— Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) June 24, 2018
The President’s eldest daughter was referring to her 2X Americas initiative. According to Foreign Policy, Ivanka Trump’s ambitious project is meant to empower and aid Latin American women entrepreneurs. The 2X Americas initiative is meant to allocate $150 million in seed funding for Latin American women, eventually facilitating a total of $500 million for Latin American businesswomen.
“We want to work with our private sector partners to marshal the capital needed to finally close this persistent credit gap, so that [for] every dollar we invest, up to three private sector dollars will be mobilized, 2X Americas will empower women in Latin America. And when women succeed, families succeed, communities succeed, and countries succeed,” Ivanka said at a news conference, according to Yahoo News.
Although the President’s daughter has promised to focus on issues such as women’s empowerment, and women’s entrepreneurship, “her work has amounted to little more than photo ops and tweets,” according to the Center for American Progress (CAP).
Recently, as the Inquisitr reported, Vanity Fair reporter and author of Born Trump, Emily Jane Fox, alleged that Ivanka Trump – even though she is a senior White House adviser – cannot significantly influence policy, due to the “twisted” relationship with her father.
