Tiffany Trump is often called the “forgotten” daughter of Donald Trump, and a new Vanity Fair profile offered a glimpse into her not-so-glamorous life compared to her older half-sister, Ivanka Trump.
“Ivanka has such a brand and a personality and consistency in her Instagram,” a friend of Tiffany’s told the magazine. Meanwhile, the 23-year-old aspiring law school student “is jumping into this whole process with both feet. She hasn’t polished it yet.”
The friend explained that while Ivanka, 35, has years of experience representing the family brand with polished interview answers and impeccable style, it’s all new to the daughter of Marla Maples, the second wife of President-elect Donald Trump. The fashion designer gives Tiffany “politics advice, boy advice and sisterly advice,” and tips “she picked up from being famous” such as “this is the color that looks best on camera” or “make sure when you sit down you cross your legs.” While the rest of Donald’s older kids with Ivana Trump grew up near their dad in NYC, Tiffany was all the way out in Calabasas, California, with her mom. “Her everyday existence is less glamorous,” VF writes.
Ivanka, who serves as an executive vice president of the Trump Organization and head of her eponymous brand, made one brief mention of Tiffany in her 2009 book, The Trump Card: Playing to Win in Work and Life. The anecdote was about how then-15-year-old Tiffany wanted advice from Ivanka about how to ask her dad if she could have access to his credit card — and it was “not because she was spoiled” but because she wanted to fit in with her friends.
“Big Sis did an end-around to save Tiffany the trouble. I didn’t tell her, of course,” Ivanka wrote. “But I went to our father and suggested he think about surprising Tiffany with a credit card for Christmas, with a small monthly allowance on it. Sure enough, he did just that. Tiffany was thrilled and relieved. And so appreciative.”
While Tiffany attended the prestigious Ivy League University of Pennsylvania a few years later, she still didn’t have unlimited access to her dad’s estimated $3.7 billion fortune. The president-elect provided Tiffany with a budget of $500 a month, a friend told Vanity Fair. The friend added that when dining out with pals, “she calculated down to the penny how much she owed.”
Her limited budget wasn’t her only grief in college. Tiffany was cut in the first round of rush to the exclusive secret society, Tabard Society, the magazine reports. A source said that the group thought having a Trump child as a member might deter other respectable women from joining. (However, a Tiffany pal denies she was interested in Tabard. She later joined Kappa Alpha Theta.)
Since she was finishing up school during her father’s wild primary and general election seasons, Tiffany didn’t attend many events on the campaign trail until the final weeks leading up to Election Day, and the future POTUS, 70, doesn’t discuss her as much as he discusses Ivanka either. In one of Donald’s first-ever interviews mentioning Tiffany, he recalled that when Maples told him she was pregnant, he said, “What are we going to do about this?” Some have taken that to mean he was suggesting that Maples get an abortion, but Donald — who now says he’s pro-life — has vehemently denied that’s what he meant. In another interview about baby Tiffany, the dad of five — Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric, Tiffany and Barron — lamented that she had his lips but hopefully she would “grow out of that.”
Now, Tiffany, who is dating registered Democrat and Hillary Clinton supporter Ross Mechanic, is living in NYC near Trump Tower and is planning to attend law school. She’s also trying to “establish her own identity outside the family,” according to Vanity Fair.
