President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday nominated Charles Kushner, the father of his son-in-law Jared Kushner, as the US ambassador to France
President-elect, Donald Trump, has nominated Charles Kushner, the father of Jared Kushner, who is married to Ivanka Trump, to serve as U.S Ambassador to France.
Trump praised Kushner’s extensive experience in real estate, philanthropy, and leadership, emphasizing the strong family ties that align with his administration’s legacy.
“I am pleased to nominate Charles Kushner, of New Jersey, to serve as the U.S Ambassador to France. He is a tremendous business leader, philanthropist, and dealmaker, who will be a strong advocate representing our Country and its interests.
“Charlie is the Founder and Chairman of Kushner Companies, one of the largest and most successful privately held Real Estate firms in the Nation.
“He was recognized as New Jersey Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst and Young, appointed to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council, a year and served as a Commissioner, and Chairman, of the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, as well as on the Boards of our top institutions, including NYU.
“Congratulations to Charlie, his wonderful wife Seryl, their 4 children, and 14 grandchildren. His son, Jared, worked closely with me in the White House, in particular on Operation Warp Speed, Criminal Justice Reform, and the Abraham Accords.
“Together, we will strengthen America’s partnership with France, our oldest Ally, and one of our greatest,” Trump wrote to nominate Kushner as a US Envoy.
However, the choice is being analyse by critical thinkers on the previous antecedents of the nominee and the mirror of the President’s -elect in the coming four years.
The choice is in keeping with Trump’s pattern, so far, of selecting people, often wealthy, who are close to his family or of proven loyalty.
The nominee, Kushner is a multimillionaire real estate executive and former attorney; his son was a senior adviser during Trump’s first term.
Trump did not mention, however, that the elder Kushner once served jail time – a two-year sentence, most of it served in a federal prison.
Kushner, who is now 70, pleaded guilty in 2004 to 18 counts of tax evasion, witness tampering and making illegal campaign contributions.
The case, which was prosecuted by then US attorney Chris Christie, included sordid details, to which Kushner admitted: that he had hired a prostitute to seduce his brother-in-law, a man cooperating in a campaign finance inquiry, and then videotaped the encounter and sent it to the man’s wife, Kushner’s sister, to dissuade her from testifying against him.
Christie, who worked on Trump’s first presidential transition team and then opposed him in this year’s Republican primary contests, later said Kushner had committed a “loathsome” and “disgusting crime.”
In 2020, Trump issued a pardon to Kushner, whose conviction had resulted in him being disbarred in three states.
Nominees for key ambassadorships are often business associates of a president-elect, or major political donors. But it is rare, if not unprecedented, to name a convicted felon.
The first two men to fill the prestigious Paris post were famed inventor and statesman Benjamin Franklin and a future president, Thomas Jefferson.
If confirmed, Kushner would succeed Denise Bauer, a former ambassador to Belgium who was a major Democratic fundraiser and donor.
