Donald Trump’s relationship with his son-in-law Jared Kushner is reportedly souring as jealousy is eating away at the former President, reported CNN. The close advisory relationship is no more, claim sources cited by the outlet.
"He's always been suspicious of Jared," a source was cited as saying.
Donald Trump recently "complained about Kushner inking a book deal that he thinks his son-in-law will use to take credit for some of his achievements," said another person, confirming that the 45th POTUS was envious of Kushner's “seven figures” book deal with Broadside Books, a branch of publisher HarperCollins.
A former White House official was cited as saying that the former President has always been alert to any instances when aides might try to steal credit from him.
"It is not a secret President Trump doesn't like when he thinks other people are getting attention for something he feels he has facilitated. There's a sweet spot between saying nothing about work you did and saying too much that everyone has to find -- or else he gets triggered."
According to the report, Trump is also questioning his former adviser’s accomplishments during his own tenure at the White House, in particular in regards to the criminal justice reforms and the Middle East peace deals.
The recent violence in the Middle East between Israel and Hamas reportedly led Trump to wonder whether Kushner really “accomplished peace in the Middle East after all”, according to two sources.
However, the reported “estrangement” between Trump and his son-in-law has been dismissed by another person who works with the ex-POTUS currently.
The individual was cited as saying that Donald Trump has worked with several journalists on their books about his presidency. When asked directly whether he blames Kushner for his election loss, “Every time, he's answered definitively, 'no,' on the record," said the person.
Others close to the ex-WH adviser claim Kushner “knows Trump acknowledges his successes."
‘Just a Son-in-Law’
Jared Kushner, who is Jewish, is married to Trump's eldest daughter Ivanka. The couple has three children together, Arabella, 9, Joseph, 7, and Theodore, 5.
After Trump’s loss to his Democratic opponent Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential elections, the couple of now ex-WH advisers moved into a condo in Miami, putting distance between their current life and the former President.
Kushner, 40, was earlier reported as deliberately stepping back from politics to forge a “simpler” relationship of “just a son-in-law” with Trump, according to a report by The New York Times. Kushner ostensibly informed some advisers to the ex-president that he plans to channel his efforts into writing his book.
Senior WH Adviser
The ex-President's son-in-law oversaw Trump's 2020 campaign and served as a senior adviser during his White House stint. As Trump's special envoy in the Middle East, he focused on facilitating peace talks in the region.
Trump's January 2020 "deal of the century" plan for an Israeli-Palestinian peace accord was authored by Kushner. That summer he was also instrumental in negotiating for the United Arab Emirates to normalise relations with Israel in what came to be known as the Abraham Accords.
In September 2020, Bahrain joined the United Arab Emirates in signing a peace deal with Israel. The deal was later expanded to include Sudan and Morocco. Kushner was also a strong advocate for the bipartisan criminal justice reform bill which President Trump signed into law in December 2018.
However, according to an Axios report in 2020, Trump subsequently expressed regrets in private about having followed through with the First Step Act, which reformed federal prisons and sentencing laws.
As for Jared Kushner’s wife and ex-White House adviser Ivanka Trump, her former chief of staff, Julie Radford, was quoted by CNN as saying:
"She is being very present, in the moment… She's not concerned… After spending four years serving and traveling the country extensively, Ivanka is taking time with family and friends".
