President Donald Trump's administration has been roundly criticized for the lack of federal intervention with regards to the distribution of vital Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) designed to help slow the spread of the virus.
States have broken out into bidding wars and PPE is being hoarded by any entity that can afford it—including the federal government.
Enter the President's son-in-law and senior advisor Jared Kushner. Kushner was charged with overseeing a volunteer group responsible for securing PPE for certain hospitals across the nation.
According to a complaint from one of these volunteers to the House Oversight Committee, the group routinely gave preferential treatment to input from pro-Trump Fox News hosts like Jeanine Pirro and Brian Kilmeade.
The Washington Post reported:
"'Fox & Friends' host Brian Kilmeade, for example, called two people he knew in the administration to pass along a lead about PPE in an effort to be helpful, said two people familiar with the outreach. Fox News Channel host Jeanine Pirro also repeatedly lobbied the administration for a specific New York hospital to receive a large quantity of masks, one of the people said."
Fox News confirmed the correspondence between Kushner and its hosts, but a spokesperson stressed that neither Pirro nor Kilmeade knew their requests were being prioritized.
The New York Times went on to confirm Pirro's hounding of the group:
"Some associates of Mr. Trump sought special treatment from FEMA. In one case, Jeanine Pirro, the Trump stalwart and Fox host, repeatedly contacted task force members and FEMA officials until 100,000 masks were sent to a hospital she favored. Ms. Pirro did not respond to emails seeking comment."
Kushner's corruption, sadly, didn't come as a surprise.
People want accountability.
For a deeper look into how people like Kushner and Trump came to rule the United States, check out American Oligarchs, available here.
