Trump reportedly blames Jared Kushner for the Mueller probe

As White House staffers start to seriously contemplate the possibility of impeachment after the first round of indictments in Special Counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation, the president has begun to blame his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, for his unenviable position.

Vanity Fair reports that the president, during a Tuesday phone call with former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon, blamed Kushner for Mueller's advancing investigation because he had advocated the firings of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and former FBI Director James Comey. Bannon — who once referred to Kushner as a "cuck" — is to said want former White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus to testify to Mueller that Kushner pushed the president to fire Comey.

Meanwhile, in a recent call with close friend Roger Stone, Trump agreed with Stone's assessment that Kushner had given the president bad political advice, Vanity Fair reports. The White House did not respond to a request from Vanity Fair for comment.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

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.

Sign up

Earlier this year, Kushner led a delegation to the Middle East on Trump's behalf to discuss the possibility of brokering peace between Israel and Palestine. Kushner's vast portfolio also includes "fighting the opioid crisis" and "reforming care for veterans." Read more about Trump's son-in-law in the hot seat — as well as the rising anxiety in the White House after Mueller's first indictments — at Vanity Fair.