Watch Trump’s Granddaughter Serenade China’s President With Songs and Poetry in Mandarin
By Ryan General
April 10, 2017
Despite months of hostile tweets and pronouncements from President Donald Trump against Chinese President Xi Jinping, the recent meeting between the two world leaders ended up quite civil after all.
Said to have been made possible by presidential son-in-law and White House advisor Jared Kushner, the dinner on Friday may have given the Trump administration a chance to mend the previous diplomatic rift with the second largest economy in the world.
Above anything else though, we would like to think it was Trump’s Mandarin-speaking 5-year-old granddaughter who may have sealed the two governments’ newfound friendship.
Arabella Kushner, child of Trump’s daughter Ivanka and Jared Kushner, sang a popular Chinese folk song and recited Chinese poetry for Xi Jinping and first lady Peng Liyuan during the landmark dinner at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida.
She recited two poems by Tang dynasty (618-907 AD) poet Li Bai for Xi and Peng. Dressed in an elegant blue and white dress, Arabella also performed pieces with her three-year-old brother, Joseph Kushner.
Together, they serenaded the Chinese first couple with the traditional Chinese song, Mo Li Hua (or “Jasmine Flower”). They also recited the Confucian classic poem Three Character Classic, also known as “san zi jing” in Chinese.
In a social media post of the footage of the children’s performance, Ivanka wrote: “Very proud of Arabella and Joseph for their performance in honor of President Xi Jinping and Madame Peng Liyuan’s official visit to the US!”
Just like her mom, Arabella is popular in China and is beloved by many Chinese citizens. In fact, she has previously gone viral in China for her Mandarin-speaking skills.
A video of her singing the Chinese version of Happy New Year while playing with a traditional Chinese string puppet became a huge hit in Chinese social media during the Lunar New Year in February.
“Arabella singing a song she learned for #ChineseNewYear,” Ivanka wrote in the caption. “Wishing everyone an amazing year to come during these days of celebration. ”
According to SCMP, many now think that Arabella, who began learning Mandarin when she was a little over 1-year-old, could just be Trump’s secret weapon in winning the communist administration over in his favor.
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