Supermodel Karlie Kloss has maintained radio silence on her Trump family connections for four years. But as the president and his acolytes fall from favor in the wake of a violent riot at the U.S. Capitol, she wants you to know one thing: She was always trying to stop them.
Kloss, who married Jared Kushner’s younger brother, Joshua, in 2018, is known for making splashy declarations of her liberal bona fides: In the lead-up to the presidential election, she posted coy ballot selfies and posed in $700 boots emblazoned with the slogan “Vote.” At the same time, she has quietly declined to comment on the decidedly illiberal behavior of her in-laws.
But on Wednesday, that changed. As alt-right extremists stormed the Capitol, Kloss tweeted: “Accepting the results of a legitimate democratic election is patriotic. Refusing to do so and inciting violence is anti-American.”
Accepting the results of a legitimate democratic election is patriotic. Refusing to do so and inciting violence is anti-American.— Karlie Kloss (@karliekloss) January 7, 2021
The statement was much like the boilerplate condemnations issued by basically every public figure and entity, from Amy Schumer to Axe Body Spray. But it might have also been a subtle dig at Ivanka, who the same day posted (and then deleted) a tweet referring to the rioters as “American patriots.”
When one user responded that Kloss should pass along the message to her in-laws, the model quickly replied: “I’ve tried.”
The quip was the closest Kloss has come to copping to any disunion among the Kushners. But some questioned whether she’d “tried” hard enough.
On Instagram, the writer and internet personality Tavi Gevinson tore into Kloss, arguing she was merely trying to save face during the final, destructive days of the Trump era.
“What @karliekloss means to say is: I have no real interest in using my political power so much as maintaining a watery ‘feminist’ liberal brand while protecting my ties to the Trumps and Kushners,” Gevinson wrote, arguing that Kloss has had more than four years to make her opposition to the Trump administration’s policies explicit.
Tavi Gevinson is a real one!!! pic.twitter.com/F6sgcux7T0— Camilla Blackett (@camillard) January 7, 2021
In the past, Kloss has appeared insulted when those around her have brought up her political connections. During an episode of “Project Runway,” on which she served as a celebrity judge, one contestant snarkily asked if she could wear a particular ensemble “to dinner with the Kushners.” He was immediately booted from the show while Kloss made a series of extremely shocked faces.
Kloss and Kushner’s more recent actions also suggest they’re not that interested in distancing themselves from the relatives they timidly criticize on social media. In December, the couple purchased a $23.5 million compound in Miami, in convenient proximity to Ivanka and Jared’s home.
It’s fun to pose in politically-conscious footwear, but it seems like Kloss draws the line at giving up any of the perks that come with marrying into an uber-wealthy American dynasty.
As Gevinson, continuing to ventriloquize Kloss, put it: “Now that you can rest assured I’m just like you, only rich: Buy my Adidas line.”
Karlie Kloss finally commented on her Kushner connections — sort of
Irene Katz Connelly is a staff writer at the Forward. You can contact her at connelly@forward.com. Follow her on Twitter at @katz_conn.
Karlie Kloss finally commented on her Kushner relatives