NBC News correspondent Garrett Haake asked former First Daughter-in-Law and current RNC Chair Lara Trump to respond to critics who believe she’s unqualified and got the job because “you have Donald Trump’s last name.”
Haake questioned Lara Trump about a number of issues — including her support for the former president’s election lies — in an interview released on the heels of her predecessor’s ouster from NBC after a Trump-inspired backlash — which did not come up.
At one point, Haake asked Trump to respond to critics who believe she’s been installed as part of a “Trump family takeover” — especially Nikki Haley supporters:
GARRETT HAAKE: I hope you won’t be offended by the premise of this question, but the position of RNC co-chair is not one that traditionally gets this kind of attention. A lot of it is because of who you are as Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law. You have Donald Trump’s last name.
What do you say to Republican voters? And there are millions of them, people who voted for Nikki Haley, Republicans who are not comfortable with the idea of sort of the Trump family takeover of the Republican Party.
LARA TRUMP: Well, I’m not the first family member to have ever held this title, first and foremost, of any president or former president.
GARRETT HAAKE: That’s right.
GARRETT HAAKE: And so this is not a first in history. But what I will say is I have had so much experience.
If you look at the fact that I am one of very few people who can say that I have been part of now three presidential campaigns. The media exposure and experience that we in the Trump family have had over the past eight years rivals most people who make their career in politics, and I can guarantee you, none of us ever imagined we would find ourselves in this position.
But I think the reason that I’m here is to assure people who ever had any question as to how their money is being spent, can they trust the RNC? Can they donate to this entity?
