Jared Kushner reportedly lets Saudi royalty handle his 'entire schedule' on Riyadh trips

President Trump's senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner visited Saudi Arabia last week, spending a good chunk of time meeting with its royal court.
But officials and staffers in Riyadh's U.S. embassy say they have no idea what went on in those meetings — they weren't invited, they tell The Daily Beast. Then again, that's "normal" for Kushner's Saudi trips, one congressional source says.
Kushner is close with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, and reportedly defended him as intelligence officials tied him to the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi late last year. Kushner has since taken many trips to the region in the past few years, and pretty much every time, "the royal court was handling the entire schedule," a congressional source tells The Daily Beast.
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.
The White House noted Kushner's visit with bin Salman and King Salman last week, saying they discussed "U.S.-Saudi cooperation, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and economic investment in the region," The Daily Beast writes. "But no one from the embassy in Riyadh was in the meetings" or informed about what went on, The Daily Beast continues. One State Department senior official did attend the meetings, but he specializes on Iran, one source says.
The White House countered this reporting, saying it "is not true and the sources are misinformed" and that the Riyadh embassy was involved in Kushner's visit. Read more at The Daily Beast.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
‘Tariffs at their essence are an income transfer’
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Why is Trump backtracking on the Hyundai immigration raid?
Today’s Big Question Backlash threatens investment in US manufacturing
-
The 9 restaurants to eat at this very moment
The Week Recommends They’re award-winning. Isn’t that reason enough?
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to Trump
Speed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raids
Speed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raid
Speed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'
Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearing
Speed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mount
Speed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own list
speed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battle
Speed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants