The Senate on Monday confirmed real estate mogul Charles Kushner, pardoned by President Donald Trump during his first term in office, as the U.S. Ambassador to France and Monaco in a 51-45 vote.
Kushner is the father-in-law to Ivanka Trump. He was convicted in 2005 of tax evasion, illegal campaign contributions, and retaliating against a cooperating witness.
He served two years in a minimum security prison and had stayed out of trouble since then.
Kushner, who lived in New Jersey, made many philanthropic contributions during his life. There is a wing named after his family in St. Barnabas Hospital in Essex County, New Jersey; he also gave large donations to Yeshiva University in Washington Heights, Manhattan.
If all he wanted to do was give away too much money, that would be one thing. But he also schemed to get back at a witness against him--his sister--by arranging for a prostitute to seduce her husband and filming it.
That's a really slimy thing to do, and he admitted it when he pled guilty to the charges against him.
He said during his confirmation hearing that he learned from his mistakes of almost two decades ago.
"I think that my past mistakes actually make me… better in my values to really make me more qualified to do this job," he told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Let's hope he's learned his lesson. Not only will he be representing the U.S. in France and Monaco, but he is also intertwined in Trump's family because he's Jared Kushner's father and the other grandfather to some of Trump's grandkids.
Trump seems to think he learned. During his nomination announcement in November, he called Kushner a "tremendous business leader, philanthropist, & dealmaker, who will be a strong advocate representing our country & its interests."
"He was recognized as New Jersey Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young, appointed to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council, & served as a commissioner, & chairman, of the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, as well as on the boards of our top institutions, including NYU," Trump said.
"Congratulations to Charlie, his wonderful wife Seryl, their 4 children, & 14 grandchildren," Trump continued. "His son, Jared, worked closely with me in the White House, in particular on Operation Warp Speed, Criminal Justice Reform, & the Abraham Accords."
Rewarding a convicted felon with an ambassadorship doesn't seem like the best move for Trump to make--although after the pardon, Kushner isn't a convicted felon anymore.
Guess we'll find out how Kushner does as the liaison to one of our biggest allies.
