He was the last choice of Washington insiders to be President Trump’s policy guru, and most simply dissed son-in-law Jared Kushner’s pick as a senior adviser to the president as good old nepotism.
But after four years in his office next to Trump’s unofficial haunt, the president’s private dining room, the 39-year-old has quietly racked up two dozen foreign and domestic policy wins that make up the core of the president’s legacy.
In an interview, the former New York real estate developer and husband of first daughter Ivanka Trump agreed that he didn’t have the typical Washington background for his “unexpected chapter.”
And that, he believes, is why his office walls are adorned with victory mementos from his work on criminal justice reform, the construction of 450 miles of border wall, several coronavirus initiatives, the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade deal, moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, and the Abraham Accords, the set of Middle East peace deals that is the crown jewel of his tenure.
“I got criticized for taking on too many initiatives and too many hard problems. But if I’m leaving my life and leaving my businesses and coming to volunteer for the government and having the honor to do this, I wanted to spend every minute working to accomplish for the American people,” said Kushner.
“I wanted to work on as many problems as possible. I wasn’t afraid to take on the big challenges because that’s where you can make long-term existential change,” he added.
Kushner went at each project with trademark discretion and organization. With top aides including Avi Berkowitz and Cassidy Dumbauld, he cut a new path in Washington. Especially unusual was his team’s lack of bragging and their accessibility to those they were working with. One insider said that “every call” was taken, even from opponents.
When they shocked with bipartisan deals such as the First Step Act that led to criminal justice reform, the first concrete Middle East peace deals between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Sudan, Morocco, and Bahrain, and Operation Warp Speed to rush the coronavirus vaccine, former critics offered praise.
For example, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, in his new book, said that Kushner’s just-do-it style was a plus in the virus fight: “He was attentive, and he delivered. Jared was the person who eventually produced the PPE [personal protective equipment], ventilators, and military personnel for New Yorkers, and I am grateful on their behalf.”
Tommy Binion, the vice president of government relations at the Heritage Foundation, said: “From the Middle East peace deals to criminal justice reform, he took on Washington’s toughest challenges and excelled. Few are as ambitious in the projects they choose or as successful.”
And presidential historian Doug Wead said that there hasn’t been a presidential aide comparable to Kushner since former Nixon national security adviser Henry Kissinger.
“Jared Kushner towers above all other White House aides and all but a handful of Cabinet officers,” he said. “We have not seen the likes of him in history, and we will not likely see it again for a long time to come.”
As Trump’s term ends, Kushner is satisfied with the approach the president and his team took.
“We did it our way, not the Washington way, and we got a lot of things done. We have a lot to be proud of,” he said.
Below are the highlights cited by the White House of the policies Kushner played a leading role in.
Kushner’s scorecard: 24 points for Trump’s legacy
- Jerusalem Embassy/Golan Heights: Kushner played a significant role in Trump’s decisions to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to move its embassy there, as well as the decision to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights. Trump was the first president to make good on the embassy move promise. Critics predicted massive riots throughout the Middle East if the move was made, but Kushner helped keep the broader Arab world calm after the announcement, and violence was mostly avoided.
- Abraham Accords: Brokered four Middle East peace deals, collectively known as the Abraham Accords, between Israel and Arab countries. The accords became an internationally recognized paradigm shift that could transform the region.
- Israel-UAE Peace Treaty: Israel and the United Arab Emirates agreed to normalize relations on Aug. 13, 2020. At the time, the UAE became just the third Arab country to make peace with Israel and the only Gulf Arab country to ever do so.
- Israel-Bahrain Peace Treaty: Israel and the Kingdom of Bahrain agreed to normalize relations on Sept. 11, 2020. Kushner sealed the deal after a visit to Bahrain in September 2020. Bahrain became the second Gulf Arab country to recognize Israel and the fourth Arab country.
- Israel-Sudan Peace Treaty: Settled on Oct. 23, 2020. The agreement ended 53 years of belligerence. Sudan became the fifth Arab country to recognize Israel.
- Israel-Morocco Peace Treaty: They agreed to full diplomatic relations on Dec. 10, 2020, in a deal that also saw the United States recognize Moroccan sovereignty in the area of Western Sahara. Morocco became just the sixth Arab League country to recognize Israel.
- Saudi airspace: After a trip to Saudi Arabia by Kushner, the Saudi aviation commission began allowing flights to and from Israel to fly in its airspace, ending a 1948 ban.
- Trump Peace Plan: Led the team that crafted the Trump Peace Plan, released in January and aimed at settling the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It’s what set the stage for the Abraham Accords. It was the first time that Israel agreed to negotiate on the basis of a proposal, published a detailed map, and got praise from Arab and European countries as a viable basis for negotiations.
- Serbia-Kosovo: Helped negotiate the Serbia-Kosovo economic normalization that also included Serbia agreeing to move its embassy to Jerusalem and Kosovo, a Muslim-majority country, to recognize Israel and move its embassy as well.
- U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement: Using his ties to Mexico and with U.S. Trade Representative Bob Lighthizer, Kushner negotiated with Mexico and Canada to replace NAFTA. At $1.3 trillion in annual trade, it was the largest trade deal ever. It was signed on Nov. 30, 2019, and Kushner was awarded the Order of the Aztec Eagle, Mexico’s highest honor to non-Mexicans.
- OPEC Oil Crisis: Led U.S. negotiations with Saudi Arabia, Russia, and Mexico to cut production and stabilize global oil markets.
- FIFA World Cup 2026: Helped the team that won the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
- Olympics 2028: Led the team to bring the 2028 Summer Olympics to Los Angeles.
- U.S.-China: Kushner, Lighthizer, and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin negotiated the trade deal with China.
- Gulf Cooperation Council breakthrough: After a Kushner visit to Saudi Arabia and Qatar this month, Saudi Arabia and Qatar reached a tentative deal to end a Saudi-led blockade of Qatar.
- Played a key role in Treasury’s establishment of the Counter Terror Finance Center to help Arab nations limit funds to terrorist organizations.
- Hosted the Peace to Prosperity Summit in Bahrain last year that produced an economic plan for peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
- Criminal justice reform: Kushner led the efforts with liberals and conservatives to pass the First Step Act signed by Trump on Dec. 21, 2018. It cut recidivism and urged reforms in federal prisons.
- Operation Warp Speed: Kushner worked with the departments of Defense and Health and Human Services to speed the development of the coronavirus vaccine that is now being distributed in record time.
- Ventilators: Worked with private firms to change production lines and make 100,000 ventilators needed in the war on the coronavirus.
- Project Airbridge: Coordinated with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Pentagon to find and move PPE. Over 100 flights filled with over 1 billion pieces of medical supplies and equipment made it to front-line workers.
- Border wall construction: Was key to making good Trump’s promise to build a border wall, which will soon pass 450 miles.
- Policing reform: Helped to put in place the Safe Policing for Safe Communities Executive Order after George Floyd’s death in May while being in Minneapolis police custody. It incentivized police reform, and the White House said that thousands of departments have adopted the standards.
- Healthcare records: Worked with the Center for Medicaid Services to deliver a new electronic health records interoperability plan.
