Donald Trump claims Ivanka Trump's private emails are different than Hillary Clinton's

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump defended daughter Ivanka's use of private emails on Tuesday, claiming her practices differed from those of 2016 election opponent Hillary Clinton.

"There was no hiding, there was no deleting like Hillary Clinton did," Trump told reporters at the White House.

Congressional Democrats said they see no difference, and that Ivanka Trump's private emails should be investigated to see if she is mixing public business with private business interests.

"It raises the issue of whether there has been anything improper," said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., speaking on CNN.

White House officials learned that Ivanka Trump sent hundreds of messages to government officials on her personal account while gathering documents to respond to a public records lawsuit, The Washington Post reported.

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Speaking to reporters while en route to a Thanksgiving weekend at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla., Trump said his daughter's private messages are still part of the presidential records, and that Clinton was secretary or State while his daughter is a White House adviser.

"They weren’t classified like Hillary Clinton," Trump said. "They weren't deleted like Hillary Clinton, who deleted 33,000. She wasn't doing anything to hide her emails."

Asked if he would allow congressional Democrats to interview his daughter about private emails, Trump said: “Ivanka can take care of herself.”

A spokesman for Trump’s attorney, Peter Mirijanian, said Ivanka Trump “sometimes used her private account, almost always for logistics and scheduling concerning her family."

More:Ivanka Trump sent hundreds of messages from personal email account, according to report

She used private email “until the White House provided her the same guidance they had to others," the spokesman said.

A number of Democrats pointed out Trump made Clinton's private emails a major theme in the 2016 presidential election.

"Trump spent his campaign attacking Hillary Clinton for using a private email account for official business," said a statement from the Democratic National Committee. "Now, we’ve learned that Ivanka Trump used similar email practices. The hypocrisy could not be clearer."

Democrats will be in a position to probe private email use by Ivanka Trump – and perhaps other officials – when they take control of the U.S. House early next year.

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform sought to investigate private email use by Trump administration officials last year, "but the White House never gave us the information we requested,” said U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland, the committee's top Democrat.

“We need those documents to ensure that Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, and other officials are complying with federal records laws and there is a complete record of the activities of this Administration," Cummings said.

His daughter's emails were one of several topics Trump spoke about on Tuesday: 

– People should not worry about U.S. troops who have to spend the holiday on the border: "Don't worry about the Thanksgiving. These are tough people ... they are so proud to be representing our country."

– He has finished his written answers to Russia special counsel Robert Mueller, and "the lawyers have them," and "I assume they'll turn them in today or soon.”

Again denying he colluded with Russians who sought to influence the 2016 election, Trump again protested what he called "the witch hunt that's been going on forever."

– Pledged to someday visit U.S. troops in a "war zone," but did not specify which one.

– Attacked judges on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on the west coast for ruling against his administration in many immigration cases.