Fox News' Jesse Watters appears to make lewd Ivanka Trump joke then takes abrupt holiday

Jesse Watters says he will be taking a short break with his family

A Fox News presenter is taking a break from TV after he made a joke about Ivanka Trump that was widely interpreted as a sexual innuendo.

Moments after suggesting left-wingers booing the first daughter, were being disrespectful, Jesse Watters said he "liked how she was speaking into that microphone", before smirking at his fellow presenters.

He was commenting on footage of Ms Trump addressing a panel at an Inspiring Women event in Germany, where she faced a hostile audience and she was forced to defend her father's record on women.

She said the "thousands" he had employed in the Trump Organisation were "testament to his belief and solid conviction in the potential of women".

Mr Watters said during a live broadcast: "It’s funny, the left says they really respect women, and then when given an opportunity to respect a woman like that, they boo and hiss.

"So I don’t really get what’s going on here, but I really liked how she was speaking into that microphone."

Grinning as he made the remark, he also raised his hand as if he were holding a microphone.

The comment was immediately picked up on by social media users, who widely interpreted it as a sexual innuendo.

He later denied the comment was meant that way.

"During the break we were commenting on Ivanka’s voice and how it was low and steady and resonates like a smooth jazz radio DJ," he said. "This was in no way a joke about anything else."

On his show The Five he later announced he would be taking a short holiday with his family, CNN reported.

Mr Watters' comment came less than a week after Fox News parted ways with veteran anchor Bill O'Reilly, following a sexual harassment controversy that had reportedly seen it pay out some $13 million (£10 million) in settlements over a number of years.