President Trump’s son-in-law, husband of Ivanka Trump, senior confidant to the President, “special” envoy to Saudi Arabia, overseer of the Office of American Innovation, adviser to negotiations on NAFTA, facilitator of Israel-Palestine peace and many other things. These were the markings of Jared Kushner, but they appear to have shrunk considerably.
Is this the result of Kushner being forced to the sidelines by White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly, or it is a purposeful retreat into specific areas of focus, as Kushner himself claims?
At one point Kushner had walk-in privileges for the Oval Office – the inner sanctum of the most powerful political leader in the world. That is no longer the case, but his allies still say he has the President’s ear on official business.
Has Kelly’s condition to have everything go through him diminished Kushner’s influence over a vast array of political agenda items? Quite possibly. On the other hand, his friends and allies say that his relegation to the West Wing is a natural reflection of his dislike for the limelight, and stems from his innate habit of working hard.
Enemies of Kushner, however, are saying that his political naiveté was the reason for the apparent shrinkage in his power and responsibilities. And, although the White House denied this, it is believed that Trump blames him for special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s probe increasing in ever-widening circles.
That Kushner reports to Kelly has been made very clear by Kelly himself, according to aides. On the one hand, there are those (including at least one Republican in constant touch with White House goings-on) who believe Kelly is deliberately sidelining Kushner. On the other, there are those (naturally, his allies) who maintain that Kelly’s order merely “liberated” Kushner to focus on his portfolio, which technically remains as wide as ever.
Read more at TWP
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