Karlie Kloss blew up the Internet just a few days into 2020, after she was a guest judge on Project Runway and brutally took down a contestant who made a sly dig at her husband’s family - the Kushners.
Kloss, who is married to Ivanka Trump’s brother-in-law Joshua Kushner, has since addressed the moment and revealed she intends to vote for the Democrats this year.
The supermodel appeared on Watch What Happens Live! with host Andy Cohen alongside Martha Stewart, during which she was asked directly about the controversial moment.
Kloss was a guest judge on Project Runway, where the contestants were set the task to design a dress for her to wear to a CFDA event in Paris.
After judge Brandon Maxwell told contestant Tyler Neasloney that he couldn’t see “Karlie wearing [your design] anywhere, honestly”, Neasloney swiftly responded, “Not even to dinner with the Kushners?”
At the time, Kloss’ face completely changed and was clearly unimpressed by his comment - which one Los Angeles Times reporter called “MacArthur grant level shade.” In an attempt to defend himself, Neasloney said, “That’s your husband!
She told him curtly, “I was going to Paris, that was your challenge here. Keep it to the challenge.”
The moment swiftly went viral online - especially as Neasloney was later booted out of the competition. Cohen asked Kloss about it on his show.
She attempted to make light of the moment, saying, “Well listen, I was honoured to be one of the first memes of the decade. But honestly, the real tragedy in this whole thing is that no one is talking about how terrible that dress was. That’s why he went home."
"And no, I would not wear that dress to any dinner - any kind of dinner," she continued.
Cohen pressed Kloss on what her “home life” and family were like, clearly hinting at her relationship to the Trumps.
Kloss married Joshua Kushner, the brother of Jared Kushner (Ivanka's husband and a senior political advisor to the Trump administration), in 2018 after they had been dating for several years and has remained quiet regarding her relationship with the Trumps.
That said, Ivanka and Jared were seen in Wyoming at the start of their second wedding weekend and Ivanka has previously voiced her support for Kloss on social media.
Cohen confronted her, “Are you on the same page politically as the family?”
“Andy,” Kloss responded, her expression completely changing. “I’m sure I’m not the only person in this country who does not necessarily agree with their family on politics.”
Martha Stewart, who was also a guest on the show, then chimed in by saying it was a “good answer”.
Kloss clarified, “I voted as a Democrat in 2016 and I plan to do the same in 2020.”
This means Kloss voted for Trump’s opponent, Hillary Clinton, in 2016. Cohen seemed clearly taken aback by how forthcoming she was as he said “wow” in response.
Kloss also clarified that she was “passionate about different issues”, including “women’s reproductive health and planned parenthood”.
She also explained that she had fallen in love with Kushner - who she described as a “private person” - in 2012 at the age of nineteen, before the Trump administration came into power.
Without referring to her husband by name, she said, “I met my man in 2012... it was a different world and my man and I have been through a lot together. And you know I’m so proud he’s my partner.”
“It’s not been easy but it’s been worth it,” she continued. “And I would make that same decision a million times again.”
Kloss has previously discussed her and her husband’s political views, most notably in an interview with Vogue last year. She told the outlet, “Josh and I share a lot of the same liberal values that guide our lives and the things we stand for.”
