Once the untouchable son-in-law in a White House where top aides jockey for the president’s ear, Jared Kushner has now been cast in a new role: reassuring people that he’s not going to resign, while colleagues question whether he can survive politically.
Any victory lap Kushner hoped to enjoy after pulling off a successful presidential foreign trip to the Middle East was cut short after the Washington Post reported that during the transition he discussed setting up a secret backchannel with the Russian ambassador. He also failed to disclose earlier phone calls with Russian officials, according to a Reuters report.
The backchannel was never established. But the news puts Kushner squarely in the middle of a wide-ranging FBI investigation into whether Trump campaign advisers were working with Russian operatives to influence the results of the 2016 election.
And it means that the main architect of Trump’s visit to the Middle East is now the lead distraction that will greet the president, who was flying home from nine days abroad on Saturday, returning from what was seen as overall a successful foreign trip.
I'm sorry, "successful foreign trip?"
What news coverage were THEY watching?
Politico also reports that Kushner is frustrated and saddened by his ineffectiveness in his role as Trump's closest adviser:
The spotlight on Kushner’s involvement with the Russians comes at a time when the powerful son-in-law has been telling associates that he is frustrated with his job.
Two associates who have spoken to Kushner in recent weeks described him as “unhappy” and “miserable,” in part because he has not been able to make the changes he wants to under his father-in-law. Kushner, the source said, has recently seemed resigned to the fact that the internal dysfunction that has defined the first months of Trump’s administration is unlikely to pass. “He’s still trying to tell people it will improve but he seems like he was trying to convince himself,” the source said.
You would think that somebody who has been around Trump as long as Kushner has would realize that he is broken and there is just no fixing him.
As for all that talk about Kushner having multiple contacts with the Russian Ambassador, he apparently has developed a case of amnesia:
Top presidential adviser Jared Kushner’s legal team pushed back Friday night against a report that the White House senior adviser and Trump son-in-law had at least three undisclosed contacts with a Russian ambassador during and after the 2016 presidential campaign, saying he had “no recollection” of the alleged exchanges.
"Mr. Kushner participated in thousands of calls in this time period. He has no recollection of the calls as described,” Kushner’s lawyer Jamie Gorelick told POLITICO in a statement, responding to a Reuters report about Kushner's contacts with Russian ambassador to the U.S. Sergey Kislyak.
“We have asked (Reuters) for the dates of such alleged calls so we may look into it and respond, but we have not received such information," Gorelick added.
Ah yes the "I did not disclose my contacts with Russian operatives, as was my legal obligation, because they simply slipped my mind" defense.
Much like the "How could I have robbed that bank if I do not remember leaving the house?" defense.
Keep in mind that this guy is supposed to solve the opioid crisis, establish peace in the Middle East, and reform criminal justice in this country, all while forgetting important meetings that he has attended.
Yep, that should work out just peachy.
Of course remember in the eyes of Donald Trump all of this is "fake news."
It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media.— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 28, 2017
Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names....— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 28, 2017
"In my opinion?"....it is very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 28, 2017
"It is very possible that those sources don't exist?"
Wouldn't Trump know for a fact whether or not these sources were telling the truth or not?
Yeah, I think he would. Which means he is trying to sow the seeds of doubt when he already knows what the harvest of truth will reveal.
And kushner's team is fishing to see which of the phone calls have discovered and which calls haven't been discovered.
ReplyDeleteJared Kushner is a low intelligence person, much like his father-in-law. Both inherited their businesses, both were poor students and Kushner seems to have ambitions to be the con artist that his father-in-law is. But what Trump has in fake bravado, Kushner totally lacks. He is the most expressionless person I've ever seen in almost daily news photos. Does he understand anything that going on around him? He sure doesn't show it.
ReplyDeleteBeaglemom
I was surprised to find that Kushner is in fat not very bright (like I'd heard). Knowing what I now know, I'm surprised that Harvard consented to graduate him even for the small fortune they got for it.
DeletePlease. They've been pushing the "Paul Ryan a is brilliant policy wonk" for years, and he's dumb as a doorjamb. "Melania is brilliant, is fluent in five languages!~" another lie-she barely speaks English after 20 years here, and can't even write a speech of her own. Did you see her interact with any women on
Deletethe trip? Most of the women were chatting, getting to know each other, not Her Heiness. She was too busy trying to catch breeze in her Farrah Fawcett hair, or pose for the cameras in her $20,000 outfits.
Let's see: "Ivanka is a nice person!" Really? She runs Chiense sweatshops to make her clothes and shoes. She leaves her three small children all the time to be at Daddy's side in HER $20,000 outfits.
I find this administration to be the most corrupt every in our history.
Beaglemom and anonymous 4:20 both nailed it.
DeleteLittle Jerry gets it from both sides - remember, his Daddy spent time in the slammer - for... was it fraud?
Delete4:20: That would be $53,000 outfit, plus $12,000 purse!
DeleteThank you 420. That 50K+ "jacket" costs more than I get on my retirement income for TWO years! Not my FLOTUS.
DeleteJared's dad once upon a time set up his former brother in law in retaliation for some political bullshit scruff-up the 2 had.
DeleteHe filmed his own sister's husband with this hooker he'd conspired with in a hotel room. Then Jared's dad showed this sex tape at a family wing-ding one night, making sure his mom and sister were there.
Nice guy. Wonder what his sister thinks of him.
Isn't this the same person who, when talking about Hillary, kept saying "People say"?
ReplyDeleteKushner must have a pretty inflated opinion of himself if he thought for a moment he could influence Trump in any way.
ReplyDeleteHe should have gotten out when he had the chance. Too late now. He'll be lucky to avoid prison time.
If Jared thinks he is "miserable" now, just wait until he's in prison.
DeleteFirst of all no one cares about little donnie’s opinion. He has lied too many times.
ReplyDeleteYou forgot to add that Kushner was also suppose to overhaul the federal government :)
As for “his” arms deal (most of it was already layer out by Obama but then stopped because of human rights issues), Congress has not given the go ahead and is not eager to sell Saudia Arabia more arms.
What in the hell is he talking to the russians for if “he can’t remember” the conversations, they are suppose to be keeping records of these “conversations”.No wonder both Jared and little donnie are both crappy businessmen.
If they really were working in the best interest of the USA, they would have gotten advice from the experts before making phone calls to our number one enemy.
Instead they are working for themselves, making deals with russians to cover their loans.
https://www.emptywheel.net/2017/05/28/what-would-jared-kushner-middle-east-peace-look-like/
DeleteDeAR DONALD, "wAHHH, WAAAAHHHH, WAAAAAAAAHHHH" IS NOT AN EXCUSE FOR TREASON.
ReplyDeleteHope Jared brings peace to Palestine while he still has time.
ReplyDeleteIt beggars belief that Kushner and Flynn really thought they'd get away with it. What kind of reality do they inhabit?
ReplyDelete#notlikeus
One where no one has ever told them no, one where they actually have to work to accomplish something, and one where lying had consequences. Look to Mr and Mrs Kushner. Oh yeha, Daddy Kushner had some issues with that lying thing too, didn't he?
DeleteHA HA HA, president for life! With the shape he is in and the treasonous things he has done, he would be better off trying to stay president for 4 years.
ReplyDelete===========================================
http://www.rawstory.com/2017/05/he-has-no-intention-of-going-away-trump-biographers-warn-hed-like-to-be-president-for-life/
Well, sure he will be prez for life - the way he acts, his life will end soon, possibly this year. Can't even walk 700 feet with the other politicians in Sicili!
DeleteThe ironic part is that he never was usa president. He just thinks he is. America did not vote for don john trump, putin did. Americans elected Hilary Clinton.
DeleteSeems little jared needs money. LOTS of it to bail out stupid deals he made.
ReplyDeletehttps://wonkette.com/617790/kushners-real-estate-woes-have-nothing-to-do-with-his-russian-meetings-nothing-at-all
You made the assumption that Trump should "know things" regarding who the "leakers" are and where the info is coming from but I'm pretty sure that any daily briefings that he still receives are substantially lacking in any critical or sensitive information for fear he will leak it himself.
ReplyDeleteHe's a POTUS living in the dark right now and well he should be.
Successful = T.Rump didn't bepiss himself in public.
ReplyDeleteSNORT! BWAHAHAHAHA!!!!
DeleteUhm... are they sure that back channel (or one using Ivaaaaahhhnka) wasn't set up and isn't being used? If you're all watching the right hand, the magician does the turn with his left.
ReplyDeleteGood point. Or maybe the back channel is Flynn, whom Donnie wanted to keep in touch with even after he fired him.
DeleteThis makes you wince!
ReplyDeletehttps://www.emptywheel.net/2017/05/28/what-would-jared-kushner-middle-east-peace-look-like/
More Money then GOD!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.rawstory.com/2017/05/jared-kushner-has-a-massive-net-worth/
And muuuuuuuuuch more debt, too.
DeleteIt's not how much you owN, it's how much you owE, right?
Thousands of contacts with foreign and domestic contacts and he didn't take notes? Unbelievable.
ReplyDelete