Former top Trump adviser Jared Kushner is facing an investigation from the House Oversight Committee into how he landed a $2 billion investment deal from Saudi Arabia following his White House departure.
Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) informed Kushner about the inquiry and demanded that he turn over correspondence he and his firm had with top Saudi officials, namely Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, by June 16.
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“The Committee on Oversight and Reform is investigating whether you have improperly traded on your government position to obtain billions of dollars from the Saudi government and whether your personal financial interests improperly influenced U.S. foreign policy during the administration of your father-in-law, former President Trump,” Maloney wrote in a letter dated Thursday.
Kushner formed Affinity Partners the day after he exited the White House and procured a $2 billion deal from the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia about six months later, which raised ethics concerns given his sway over U.S. policy toward the oil-rich nation, Maloney contended. Kushner served as an adviser to his father-in-law, former President Donald Trump, over matters related to the Middle East as well as a slew of other hot button issues.
“For four years, you led the Trump Administration’s foreign policy in the Middle East, despite lacking any meaningful diplomatic experience, and despite significant conflicts of interest stemming from your family’s lucrative business dealings in the region,” Maloney declared. “Your support for Saudi interests was unwavering, even as Congress and the rest of the world closely scrutinized the country’s human rights abuses.”
The chairwoman then cited “the country’s human rights abuses in Yemen, the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi assassins tied to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Saudi Arabia’s crackdown on political dissidents at home” in her letter.
“While achieving six peace deals in the Middle East, Mr. Kushner fully abided by all legal and ethical guidelines both during and after his government service,” a spokesperson for Kushner told the New York Times following revelations about the inquiry.
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Maloney noted ethics officials have publicly questioned Kushner’s “impartiality” when working with Saudi Arabia during his White House days. A number of top Saudi officials had doubts about the deal due to “the inexperience of the Affinity Fund management” among other concerns, according to the New York Times.
“This investigation will inform the Committee about whether federal ethics laws should be strengthened to prevent senior public officials from taking advantage of their position within the federal government to reap a financial windfall — before, during, or after government employment,” she said.
