Eric Trump delivers a speech on the third day of the Republican National Convention on July 20, 2016 at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. Image by Getty Images

To hear Donald Trump’s son Eric tell it, his sister Ivanka is too “strong” and “powerful” to ever be affected by sexual harassment.

The declaration comes at the heels of Donald Trump telling Kirsten Powers, a columnist at USA Today, that his Jewish daughter Ivanka would be able to find another job or career if she were sexually harassed at a current one.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

After USA Today broke the story, Trump’s second-oldest son Eric told CBS’s Charlie Rose on “CBS This Morning” that everyone had simply misinterpreted his father’s comments — his sister Ivanka is not someone who should be concerned about experiencing sexual harassment.

“Ivanka is a strong, powerful woman, she wouldn’t allow herself to be [subjected] to it,” Eric Trump said in the interview.

Both Trump and Eric’s comments drew the necessary ire for a wide range of reasons — the victim blaming, downplaying sexual harassment and equating women who get sexually assaulted as “weak” and less deserving of protection are just a few of the ones that are easiest to spot — and Twitter was quick to respond.

While Eric Trump later tried to downplay the significance of what he said on Twitter, the internet wasn’t convinced.

Perhaps next time Eric Trump will think twice about how he chooses to “stick up” for his family.

Contact Veronika Bondarenko at bondarenko@forward.com or on Twitter, @veronikabond.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount