Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump’s clashes with White House officials come under microscope
- A new book describes the tumultuous rows that US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and daughter had with other senior advisers
- The author also questions whether the couple really have the country’s best interests at heart
Four months after US President Donald Trump named son-in-law Jared Kushner and daughter Ivanka as White House advisers, he was chided by a former Justice Department official named Mark Corallo. “You could start draining the swamp by removing your in-laws,” tweeted Corallo, a conservative Republican.
Yet soon after the caustic tweet, Corallo was surprised to find himself being asked to become the White House’s communications director. He turned that offer down, saying he needed time with his family. Then he was asked to be a communications consultant for the legal team. He agreed on the condition that he would never have to say anything negative about special counsel Robert Mueller, who he said “walks on water”.
As Corallo settled into his position, however, his concerns about the actions of Ivanka Trump and Kushner increased, according to investigative reporter Vicky Ward’s new book Kushner, Inc.: Greed. Ambition. Corruption. The Extraordinary Story of Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump.
The Kushners were “reckless”, Corallo is quoted as saying. He cited his concern that they were present when Trump was discussing the Mueller probe with his lawyers. That, according to Corallo, would make them witnesses to a conversation, potentially undercutting the otherwise privileged discussions between the president and his lawyers.
Amid all this, Corallo is quoted as saying that Kushner pressed him on why he wouldn’t accept the job as White House communications director. “Don’t you want to serve your country?” Kushner asked Corallo, according to Ward’s book. “Young man, my three years at the butt end of an M16 checked that box,” Corallo, an army veteran, is quoted as responding. The Corallo anecdotes are among the most striking in Ward’s book because, unlike many others cited, he spoke on the record to her, according to the endnotes.