For a brief duration on Saturday, President Trump's daughter and White House adviser, Ivanka Trump, took his seat at one of the events.
The leaders of the world's most powerful nations have gathered in Hamburg, Germany for the G-20 summit.
For a brief duration on Saturday, President Trump's daughter and White House adviser, Ivanka Trump, took his seat at one of the events as he reportedly left for a meeting with the Indonesian leader.
As the Washington Post noted, "The first daughter was spotted slipping into Trump's seat at a working session on 'Partnership with Africa, Migration and Health,' putting her shoulder-to-shoulder with British Prime Minister Theresa May. Russian President Vladimir Putin was sitting one seat down."
Reacting to a photo that showed Ivanka at the session, Michael McFaul, former U.S. Ambassador to Russia, tweeted, "This is strange. Very strange."
Another Twitter commenter said, "Ivanka Trump, unelected, unqualified, daughter-in-chief, is representing the US at the G20 summit next to May, Xi, Merkel."
A White House official has pushed back on the criticism, noting, "Ivanka was sitting in the back and then briefly joined the main table when the president had to step out. When other leaders stepped out, their seats were also briefly filled by others."
However, Ivanka Trump taking the president's seat was still somewhat unusual as, according to the BBC, the "absences at the G20 are usually covered by high-ranking state officials."
