Ivanka Trump, Kushner traveled to New Jersey for Passover despite federal guidelines: report

Ivanka Trump, President Trump’s elder daughter, and her husband Jared Kushner reportedly traveled from Washington, D.C., to New Jersey earlier this month to celebrate the first night of Passover, despite federal guidelines advising against nonessential travel due to the coronavirus outbreak. 

Ivanka Trump and Kushner are senior White House advisers who have played roles in the administration’s handling of the outbreak. The two traveled with their three children to the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey for a Passover seder last week, The New York Times reported, citing two people familiar with their plans. 

The White House later responded to Trump and Kushner’s travel, stating that their trip to the gold club was, “no different than had she been traveling to/from work,” according to a statement obtained by USA Today. 

“Ivanka – with her immediate family – celebrated Passover at a closed down facility considered to be a family home,” the statement read. “The location was less populated than the surrounding area near her home in D.C.”

Their travel earlier this month came even as Trump shared messages in which she stressed the need for social distancing amid the pandemic. In one video, posted in late March, Trump urged “those lucky enough to be in a position to stay at home, please, please do so.”

In these toughest of times, America shows her spirit and strength. This will end and we will emerge stronger than ever before.

In the meantime, social distancing saves lives! Please do your part. We are all in this together.

[Part 1] pic.twitter.com/iYzMunLJyO

— Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) March 30, 2020

“Each and every one of us plays a role in slowing the spread,” she said, adding that social-distancing requirements would “save lives.”

The Trump administration’s guidelines for social distancing urge Americans to avoid restaurants and bars, cancel nonessential travel and limit in-person gatherings to less than 10 people. As of now, the recommendations are set to remain in place until the end of April, though many governors have instituted stay-at-home orders that stretch into May and June. 

Kushner returned to Washington following the Passover celebration, though Trump has remained in New Jersey, the people told the Times. Trump has reportedly said that her father’s private golf club in Bedminster is effectively shut down, making it safer than her residence in Washington. 

People familiar with Trump’s work told the Times that she remotely participated in at least two calls where the president spoke with business leaders about the possible plans to reopen portions of the economy. In her role, Trump has advocated for the Paycheck Protection Program, a relief effort assisting small businesses affected by the pandemic.

She tweeted on Wednesday that Congress needed to “set partisan agendas aside and replenish this important program immediately!”

Updated April 16, 10:24 p.m.