Jared Kushner reportedly wants a more forceful defense of Trump Jr.'s Russia meeting


President Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner doesn't think the White House is doing enough to defend a meeting he attended last year with a Kremlin-connected lawyer that was set up by Donald Trump Jr., six White House officials and outside advisers told Politico Thursday.
He has received pushback from members of the communications team, including White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer and Sarah Huckabee Sanders, deputy press secretary, who think it doesn't make sense for surrogates to defend a meeting they don't know much about, the officials and advisers said. While they believe the outside legal team should be fielding questions on the meeting, Kushner disagrees, and says it's a White House matter because Trump is now affected.
A person close to Kushner told Politico he does not have a strategy on how to respond, but does think the communications team should call reporters and give them story updates and there should be op-eds placed in The Wall Street Journal and New York Times. He's also upset that surrogates have not received any talking points on the meeting. "Jared's the guy who is rushing the front lines and other people are saying, 'See, wait, hold, and let's get a battle strategy,'" the friend told Politico. In a statement, the White House said Kushner never discussed the meeting with the communications team.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Critics' choice: Three chefs fulfilling their ambitions
Feature Kwame Onwuachi's grand second act, Travis Lett makes a comeback, and Jeff Watson's new Korean restaurant
-
Trump soaks up adoration in his made-for-TV Cabinet meetings
IN THE SPOTLIGHT The president's televised sessions have become a platform for his top lieutenants to demonstrate executive flattery
-
Is hands-off investing the way to go?
The Explainer In many cases, your money might be better off left alone
-
DOGE put Social Security data at risk, official says
Speed Read DOGE workers made the personal information of hundreds of millions of Americans vulnerable to identity theft
-
Court rejects Trump suit against Maryland US judges
Speed Read Judge Thomas Cullen, a Trump appointee, said the executive branch had no authority to sue the judges
-
Trump expands National Guard role in policing
Speed Read The president wants the Guard to take on a larger role in domestic law enforcement
-
Trump says he's firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Speed Read The move is likely part of Trump's push to get the central bank to cut interest rates
-
Abrego released from jail, faces Uganda deportation
Speed Read The wrongly deported Kilmar Abrego García is expected to be detained at an ICE check-in and deported to Uganda
-
Trump arms National Guard in DC, threatens other cities
speed read His next targets are Chicago, New York and Baltimore
-
Judge: Trump's US attorney in NJ serving unlawfully
Speed Read The appointment of Trump's former personal defense lawyer, Alina Habba, as acting US attorney in New Jersey was ruled 'unlawful'
-
Third judge rejects DOJ's Epstein records request
Speed Read Judge Richard Berman was the third and final federal judge to reject DOJ petitions to unseal Epstein-related grand jury material