Trump reportedly joked he could have had Tom Brady as his son-in-law: 'Instead, I got Jared Kushner'
- A report from The New York Times detailed senior White House adviser Jared Kushner's tense relationship with his father-in-law, President Donald Trump.
- According to five sources cited by the Times, Trump reportedly joked he "could have had Tom Brady" as a son-in-law, but "instead, I got Jared Kushner."
- Kushner and his wife Ivanka Trump, the president's eldest daughter, have been controversial figures in the administration.
A report from The New York Times detailed senior White House adviser Jared Kushner's sometimes tense relationship with his father-in-law, President Donald Trump.
Five sources told the Times they heard Trump joke several times that he "could have had Tom Brady" as a son-in-law. "Instead, I got Jared Kushner."
Trump's first wife Ivana has claimed the president tried to get Brady and his eldest daughter, Ivanka to date, but Ivanka "wasn't into it."
The New England Patriots quarterback has called the president "a good friend" and said during his campaign it "would be great" if Trump became president, but walked back his apparent support after backlash over the comments.
Kushner wed Ivanka in 2009 and was involved in Trump's 2016 campaign and transition team.
Trump reportedly relied on Jared during the campaign, but grew to dislike and distrust him through his first year in office. But despite the high turnover rate in the White House, Kushner remains a senior adviser.
His contact with figures from Qatar, Russia, China, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates drew attention to him in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into foreign involvement in the 2016 election.
Kushner is an Orthodox Jew whose family has ties to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but has led the administration's Middle East policy despite his limited access to top information and lack of any prior diplomatic or political experience, showing Trump's reliance on family over appointed advisers.
The couple reemerged in May to open a controversial US embassy in Jerusalem, nearly a month after Kushner's top-secret security clearance was downgraded.
Despite some time under the radar and various reported tangles with several current and former administration officials, it appears Kushner and Ivanka Trump remain committed to serving the president in their White House roles.
"I have greatly enjoyed working collaboratively with so many extraordinarily devoted and competent people," Kushner told the Times through a spokesman before the article was published. "But those who have tried to undermine the president have found me to be an obstacle."
Ivanka Trump's fashion line announced last week it was shutting down "ASAP" and she released a statement describing a growing commitment to her work in Washington.
"After 17 months in Washington, I do not know when or if I will ever return to the business, but I do know that my focus for the foreseeable future will be the work I am doing here in Washington," Trump said in a statement. "So making this decision now is the only fair outcome for my team and partners."
Though the couple hasn't announced political aspirations beyond Trump's administration, according to Michael Wolff's 2018 book "Fire and Fury," Ivanka and Kushner reportedly made a deal that if either of them had the opportunity to run for president, it would be Ivanka.