Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Retired 4-Star General Barry McCaffrey: Jared Kushner Representing America 'Simply Outrageous

Retired 4-Star General Barry McCaffrey: Jared Kushner Representing America 'Simply Outrageous
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

He's not holding back.

Retired Four-Star General Barry McCaffrey told All In With Chris Hayes that it's "simply outrageous" that Jared Kushner is acting as the United States' chief foreign emissary.


Speaking to Chris Hayes on MSNBC Wednesday night, the former general excoriated Kushner, son-in-law of and senior adviser to President Donald Trump.

McCaffrey, who has not been shy in his criticism of the Trump administration, told Hayes that Kushner being put in charge of foreign policy, specifically Middle East peace, is a danger to our country.

"Putting Jared Kushner, a 30-something person with no foreign policy experience or defense policy experience, as a leading representative of the United States is simply outrageous."

Giphy

McCaffrey also explained that Kushner's lack of a security clearance is a blatant violation of both policy and precedent.

"The officers of our government, under the constitution, have to be confirmed by the Senate whether they are ambassadors, generals or senior officials of the government," said McCaffrey. "So reading out the State Department and having one-on-one contact with Jared Kushner, by phone and in person, is a huge threat to a rational policy making process."

His comments followed breaking news on Wednesday night that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was reported to have bragged about having Kushner "in his pocket."

"One of the people MBS told about the discussion with Kushner was UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, according to a source who talks frequently to confidants of the Saudi and Emirati rulers. MBS bragged to the Emirati crown prince and others that Kushner was "in his pocket," the source told The Intercept."

McCaffrey continued to say that Kushner's intermingling of personal business ties and his role as Senior White House Adviser represent a clear conflict of interest, adding to the already historic level of nepotism inside the Trump administration.

"It just has no precedent, in my view, in American government in modern times," McCaffrey added. "This is the personalization of a family business dealing with U.S. policy."

Kushner and his foreign business interests have been making headlines again lately, as news has surfaced that his billionaire father, Charles, sought $500 million in loans from the Qatari government just weeks after Trump's inauguration.

Earlier this month, it was reported that Kushner and his associates failed to disclose the attempts to secure foreign loans to Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

The Kushners are one of the largest landlords in New York City, and their flagship building, 666 Fifth Avenue, has a $1.2 billion balloon payment due early in 2019. Kushner's pursuit of foreign loans to save his real estate empire is raising eyebrows—namely, the lack of separation between governmental affairs and personal business matters.

After Kushner failed to secure the capital his company so desperately needs, Trump abruptly upended American relations with Qatar, calling it a nation that sponsors terrorism. This threw a massive wrench into the effort to establish trade and military relations in the Middle East, which is one of the top responsibilities levied onto Kushner by the president.

More from People

Donald Trump speaking in the Oval Office
Alex Wong/Getty Images

Moments After Threatening To Bomb Iran, President Trump Just Revealed His Birthday Wish—And It's Irony At Its Finest

President Donald Trump's 80th birthday is this week and his claim that his birthday wish is "peace for the world" had people raising their eyebrows, especially considering it came after he threatened to bomb Iran again.

Earlier this week, Trump declared in a post on Truth Social that Iran's military "is a complete and total mess" and bragged that most of their forces have been "completely defeated," adding:

Keep ReadingShow less
Matt Damon leads The Odyssey, though the film's Trojan Horse popcorn bucket is currently stealing the spotlight online.
Courtesy of Universal Pictures

We Just Got Our First Look At The Official Popcorn Bucket For 'The Odyssey'—And Everyone Is Making The Same Joke

At this point, movie studios aren't competing at the box office. They're competing to see who can create the most unhinged popcorn bucket.

We've had giant sandworms. We've had oversized Deadpool & Wolverine helmets. We've had designer handbags full of popcorn. We even somehow survived the predictably lackluster Melania Trump popcorn bucket era. Now, The Odyssey has entered the chat with a Trojan Horse popcorn bucket, because apparently subtlety died somewhere around 2024.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sabretooth from the 'X-Men' franchise; Tyler Mane
Marvel Entertainment; @therealtylermane/Instagram

'X-Men' Star Has Important Wakeup Call For Men After Revealing He's Been Diagnosed With 'Super Rare' Breast Cancer

Breast cancer does not discriminate between people. While it is more common in women, one out of 755 men will also be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime.

Because "breasts" are associated with women, people—including doctors—often do not recognize early signs of breast cancer in men, so they are less likely to be diagnosed until a later stage, which makes treatment more difficult.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of Evan Pfeufer's yearbook
@evanpfeufer/Instagram

New York Man's High School Yearbook Prediction From 2020 About This Year's Knicks Is Going Viral

Will the New York Knicks win it all in this year's NBA finals? It sure looks that way, and one New York man has known it would go like this since 2020.

Evan Pfeufer is going viral after showing off his yearbook prediction from his high school graduation in 2020.

Keep ReadingShow less
Trump Has Everyone Doing A Double-Take After Admitting That He 'Loves The Inflation' In Bonkers Clip

Trump Has Everyone Doing A Double-Take After Admitting That He 'Loves The Inflation' In Bonkers Clip

On Wednesday during a White House signing ceremony in the Oval Office, MAGA Republican President Donald Trump was asked whether he was concerned about the latest economic data released by his administration.

The reports showed inflation surged in May to the highest level in three years, from 2.4% a year ago to 4.2%.

Keep ReadingShow less