Members of Congress are calling on the FBI to investigate Jared Kushner, after a report was published alleging he has questionable ties to Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia.
Six Democratic Representatives asked Bureau Director Christopher Wray to initiate a probe of the White House aide and President’s son-in-law, citing an Intercept article published last week.
The report said that in October 2017, Kushner revealed in person to Salman the names of disloyal Saudi royal family members.
In November 2017, the Saudi Crown Prince detained dozens of royal family members in Riyadh’s Ritz-Carlton, in what was branded a crackdown on corruption. Seventeen of the prisoners were likely tortured and one died of injuries that he suffered while in custody, according to The New York Times.
When discussing his October meeting with Kushner–with United Arab Emirates Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed–Salman reportedly described the White House aide as being “in his pocket,” The Intercept reported.
The publication also noted that in 2017, Kushner backed a Saudi-led blockade of Qatar one month after the Qatari Ministry of Finance “rebuffed an attempt by Kushner’s real estate firm, Kushner Companies, to extract financing for the firm’s troubled flagship property at 666 Fifth Avenue” in New York City.
When asked for comment by The Intercept about Kushner’s ties to Salman, the White House referred the publication to Kushner’s personal lawyer, Abbe Lowell. A spokesperson for Lowell denied any wrongdoing on behalf of his client.
The six Democratic lawmakers who reached out to the FBI about the story said that Kushner may have violated the law, if he “leaked classified information to a foreign power.”
“You are no doubt aware that while the President has the authority to declassify and share information, the President’s advisors do not,” they said.
The letter, which was sent on Monday, was published Tuesday. It was signed by Reps. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), Don Beyer (D-Va.), Pramilya Jayapal (D-Wash.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.).
