White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said the news media is unfairly targeting President Trump's daughter and adviser Ivanka Trump, and said the press would be praising her for her work if she weren't a Trump.

"I frankly, I think it's shameful the way that she's been treated," Sanders said. "If she didn't have the same last name, they would be celebrating her. They would be praising her. They would be thanking God that she is sitting in a position that she is to influence policy and help women across this country. And instead, they attack her, they shame her, and they belittle her."

Ivanka is said to be one of her father's most trusted aides and she often sits in on official White House meetings and international meetings with leaders from other countries.

Reporters and commentators, however, often say that her involvement in top-level federal government business smacks of nepotism.

"I think it's very shameful, and I think it's sad because she's such a good advocate for so many women," Sanders said. "And for them to attack her, I think, is just really disheartening."