A former Trump White House press secretary says Jared Kushner’s “volunteer” role with the current administration lets him avoid disclosing how much money he makes.
During a Thursday interview with CNN anchor Erin Burnett, Stephanie Grisham made the claim following a CNN investigation into Kushner’s financial ties to an Israeli company with stakes in firms that have seen business grow from the war in Gaza. According to CNN, Kushner’s investment firm, Affinity Partners, is the largest shareholder in Phoenix Financial, which holds stakes worth more than $456 million in Israeli defense companies.
“None of this surprises me,” Grisham said. “I recall back in our Trump administration, he had his hands in everything.”
She also recalled how Kushner talked about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“I remember he used to bring Bibi up as if it was just like an old guy he plays basketball with. He would drop his name so casually,” she said. “Jared had a way of, you know, making it seem like he was this mover and shaker, and don’t worry, he’ll fix everything.”
Grisham then pointed to Affinity’s growth since Kushner left the White House.
“After the first Trump administration, as you guys probably know, Affinity Partners was committed $2 billion from Saudi Arabia. And now I believe its assets are around $6 billion,” she said. “Meanwhile, he’s calling himself a volunteer. I mean, that’s great volunteer work if you can get it, I guess.”
She added, “I don’t mean to be glib, but the reason he’s a volunteer is because you don’t have to then claim and show a lot of the money that you make during the time as a temporary public worker.”
Asked whether the arrangement fit Kushner’s past claim that “what people call conflicts of interest, I call experience and trusted relationships,” Grisham said it didn’t.
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