CREW sues to block Jared Kushner from acting as Trump envoy

Despite the power Kushner wields on behalf of the United States government, and the heightened risks from the substantial overlaps between his personal business interests and diplomatic role, Kushner has not faced Senate confirmation or filed a single financial disclosure—legal requirements that senior government officials are subject to.

The Constitution’s Appointments Clause requires that individuals who hold continuing government positions and exercise significant authority be vetted and approved by the Senate before they take office, and the Ethics in Government Act requires that individuals nominated to such positions, as well as other high-level government officials, file public financial disclosures. These laws apply to government officials whether they receive compensation or not.

“The president’s son-in-law is currently acting with the authority of the United States government, shaping the most serious foreign policy and national security issues facing our nation, and yet, he has not complied with legal requirements to meaningfully assure the public of his competence and fitness, and that he’s putting America’s interests before his private interests,” said CREW President Donald K. Sherman. “Senate confirmation processes and financial disclosures exist to ensure that qualified individuals are appointed and carry out their official duties with integrity. Kushner is not an exception. He cannot simply opt-out and expect the public to simply take him at his word.”

Kushner’s position as a special advisor to the president in the first Trump administration raised similar concerns about his qualifications and financial entanglements. To clear the way for Kushner and his wife, Ivanka Trump, to work in the White House, the Department of Justice reversed decades of precedent intended to prevent nepotism in government personnel decisions, allowing the president to hire members of his family. Kushner was also granted a security clearance against the reported recommendation of career security specialists who raised concerns about his foreign entanglements. Notably, Kushner was required to file financial disclosures, which showed that he and Ivanka Trump made between $172 million and $640 million in outside income while working in the White House. Soon after the Trump administration ended, Kushner secured billions of dollars for his investment firm from the very governments he had worked closely with in his official capacity.

“Jared Kushner is required to follow the Constitution and federal law, and if he has nothing to hide, he should welcome the opportunity to go through the Senate confirmation process and show the public everything is above board,” said Sherman. “Instead, he has decided to act as though he is above the law and ignore it. The court cannot allow this to continue and must intervene.”