The New York Times - Democrats Demand Answers on Jared Kushner’s Mideast Business Dealings

A pair of senior Democratic lawmakers on Thursday demanded answers from the White House about efforts by Jared Kushner to raise billions of dollars from Middle East governments for his private-equity fund while also serving as an envoy in the region for the Trump administration.

Representative Robert Garcia of California, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, and Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, the most senior member of his party on the Senate Finance Committee, wrote in a pair of letters to the White House and to Mr. Kushner’s firm that they had “serious concerns about whether the White House is letting Mr. Kushner use his influence for personal financial gain.”

“Just as seriously,” the Democrats continued, “these actions raise the potential for Mr. Kushner to be subject to conflicts of interest which could threaten the security of the American people.”

The letters cited reporting by The New York Times last week that Mr. Kushner was soliciting $5 billion or more from foreign governments for his private investment firm, Affinity Partners. In the wake of the 2024 election, Mr. Kushner, who is President Trump’s son-in-law, publicly said he would not collect more money for his firm during Mr. Trump’s second term.

Ian Brekke, Affinity’s chief legal officer, confirmed in a statement that the firm had “early conversations” about fund-raising but “does not intend to take in any additional capital while Jared is volunteering for the government.”

Mr. Brekke said Affinity “abided by all laws and regulations and will continue to do so.”

A White House spokeswoman, Anna Kelly, said in a statement that Mr. Kushner “only acts in the best interests of the American public.” She said the letters represented “the same, tired narrative that Democrats have pushed against President Trump, his family and his administration for a decade.”

Mr. Kushner holds no official government role, as he did during Mr. Trump’s first term. Still, he has been central to the administration’s foreign policy efforts, including negotiating for the release of hostages from Gaza and holding talks with Iranian officials before the onset of war.

Mr. Trump has said publicly that Mr. Kushner, whom he calls a “peace envoy,” advised him that the United States would be attacked if it did not pre-emptively strike Iran.

The lawmakers’ letter in particular asked about Mr. Kushner’s discussions with and compensation from the government of Saudi Arabia, a regional rival of Iran. The lawmakers estimated that Affinity collected $129 million in fees from Saudi Arabia’s government-run investment arm between 2021 and 2025.

The Times reported last week that Affinity had met recently with Saudi Arabian officials about investing more money in its fund.

Mr. Brekke said Affinity, like most private equity firms, does not collect fees unless its investments perform well.