April 17, 2019 | by Chris Cillizza and Lauren Dezenski

Ivanka Trump's White House blank check

Ivanka Trump is the eldest daughter of Donald Trump. And a senior adviser in his White House. And, according to her, she could have been the head of the World Bank, too.

In an interview with the Associated Press in the Ivory Coast (she's in Africa along with the head of USAID) Ivanka Trump said she talked to her father about the opening but decided against the job -- preferring to stay on in her current role, which has a very fuzzy job description but puts her in the mix on virtually every issue that comes across her father's desk.

Trump himself is effusive when talking about Ivanka. In a recent interview with The Atlantic, Trump says his eldest daughter "would've been great at the United Nations" and acknowledged that "I even thought of Ivanka for the World Bank. … She would've been great at that because she's very good with numbers."

But he didn't stop there! "If she ever wanted to run for president, I think she'd be very, very hard to beat," Trump predicted of Ivanka.

That's not happening. Yet. (Ivanka told the AP that she does not see a run for elected office in her future.) But whatever Ivanka Trump winds up doing in the future when it comes to politics, the fact that her father basically sees her as a perfect fit for every position in government -- including his own -- is a telling window into a) how much power she has in this White House and b) how little Trump differentiates between his personal life and his day job.

To be clear: There is nothing wrong with being proud of your kids. (I brag on mine all the time.) But being proud of your kids and believing they can do anything they set their minds to is different than being the President of the United States and offering up key posts to one of your kids because "she's very good with numbers."

This is exactly the reason an anti-nepotism law was passed by Congress in the late 1960s -- after John F. Kennedy had named his brother, Bobby Kennedy, as attorney general. (How did Ivanka get around that law? Because it specifies that any relation can't work in a federal agency -- and the White House is not considered an agency.)

It's been clear for a very long time that of the very small number of people the President listens to, his eldest daughter is at the top of that list. This latest revelation about her being offered the World Bank job makes clear she can basically do any job she wants to do in the White House -- because, at least in part, she is the President's daughter.

The Point: Related to the President or not, no adviser to the President should have carte blanche. And Ivanka looks like she's pretty darn close to that status.

-- Chris

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"You don't have to be a jerk about it."

-- Pete Buttigieg, on how to approach political divisions, on the stump in Iowa.

FACTS FIRST

With the redacted Mueller report's release happening tomorrow, CNN fact checker Holmes Lybrand has a Point-exclusive look at the three biggest myths around the Mueller report:

1. Its origin

The myth that the investigation into Russia and the Trump campaign started because of the infamous Steele dossier has continued to loom in the conspiratorial branches of the internet, occasionally poking its head out in the mainstream via President Trump himself.

The investigation began months before the dossier reached the FBI, after foreign adviser to the Trump campaign George Papadopoulos told Australian diplomat Alexander Downer (over drinks, lots of 'em) that Russia had damaging political info on Hillary Clinton. According to The New York Times, Downer communicated this to US authorities, prompting the FBI to begin investigating the Trump campaign and potential ties to Russia.

2. "No obstruction"

Trump has repeatedly claimed that the Barr summary of Mueller's report exonerated him of obstruction. This simply isn't true. Barr's summary literally quotes the report as stating "while this report does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him" on questions of obstruction.

3. "Proof of collusion"

The left has its fraudsters, too. Folks like Seth Abramson (who literally wrote the book on it) continue to peddle the myth that there is proof of collusion. We'll (hopefully!) know much more tomorrow, but Barr's summary quotes the report that it "did not establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities."

Have something else you want to see fact-checked in The Point? Drop us a line: lauren.dezenski@cnn.com.

CHRIS' GOOD READS

The one and only Peter Baker on Donald Trump's United Base of America

Meet Future Now

Julian Castro is a man in search of a moment

Why Pete Buttigieg kissing his husband on the day he announced for president matters, via Tim Miller

Yang Gang!

Now bacon is bad for you? I hate everything.

Speaking of food, this Buca di Beppo profile is totally fascinating

MUSICAL INTERLUDE

A Q-Tip and The Neptunes remix of Prince's "The Greatest Romance Ever Sold." (Back story here.)

INSTA POINT

Today's topic: Three things you need to know before the Mueller report drops.

LAUREN'S CAMPAIGN TRAIL LATEST

Joe Biden: Had a top aide meet with Democrats on Capitol Hill today and is widely expected to announce his candidacy early next week. He'll be in Boston tomorrow to show support for striking grocery store workers.

Seth Moulton: Is expected to announce his presidential bid early next week -- and is headed to New Hampshire in one week for his Politics & Eggs installment.

Amy Klobuchar: Is scheduled to participate in a Fox News town hall on May 8 in Milwaukee.

Pete Buttigieg: Faced down anti-gay chants while campaigning in Iowa.

Beto O'Rourke: Defended his lack of significant charitable contributions by saying he gives his time instead.

ANOTHER BUSH ON THE BALLOT?

A grandson of George H.W. Bush is not ruling out a run for his grandfather's former House seat in Houston.

Pierce Bush said he is currently focused on his current job as CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters Lone Star, but ... "If I were to run for this office, or any other office, I would certainly run as a big tent candidate focused on discussing the important matters," he told the Texas Tribune.

Right now there's only one Bush in elected office -- Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush.

YOUR DAILY GIF

From Brenna: "Beto O'Rourke is just as excited about trying to be president as I am about the fact that I thought it was Monday, but it's ACTUALLY Wednesday. Share The Point with your friend who is still writing 2018 on dates!"

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