President Donald Trump’s placid press conference with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull took an interesting turn Friday afternoon when a reporter from the Washington Examiner asked the president about his son-in-law Jared Kushner’s future in the West Wing.
Great question @gabriellahope_.
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) February 23, 2018
And the president, as he often does, surprised his audience by offering a rambling non-answer, saying he’d ultimately leave the decision of whether to grand a waiver in the hands of Chief of Staff John Kelly. This is the first time the president or anyone from the White House communications department has offered a clue as to its thinking about Kelly’s new policy.
A week ago, Kelly announced that he would soon begin revoking temporary security clearances from the dozens of senior administration employees who still don’t have them – and Kushner, who is in charge of a large portfolio of responsibilities, is probably the most senior among them.
Asked whether he would give Kushner a security clearance, Trump praises his son-in-law and senior adviser as a hard-working and “extraordinary” man, and doesn’t answer the question. “Gen. Kelly will make that call. … I have no doubt he’ll make the right decision.”
— Shane Harris (@shaneharris) February 23, 2018
Trump repeatedly referred to Kushner as an “outstanding” and “extremely talented and extremely smart” young man who – by the way – is working without pay. Trump spoke highly of Kushner’s work ethic and devotion to bettering the country, but also admitted that he would leave the question of whether to grant Kushner a waiver up to Kelly, saying “I have no doubt he’ll make the right decision” and that Kelly “would do what’s right for the country.”
“He is truly outstanding. He was very successful when he was in the private sector. He is working on peace in the middle east,” Trump said.
That’s the strongest indication yet – throughout more than a year of governing – that Trump might be willing to countenance the departure of Kushner, who, apart from being one of his closest advisers, is also a close family member.
Trump also alluded to the possibility of launching a nuclear strike – or some other devastating attack – on North Korea, the first time he’s used such harsh language in a while. He also reaffirmed his preference for “bilateral” trade deals, while lauding Australia’s help in the battle against ISIS.
Of course, Kelly could certainly decide to grant Kushner the waiver, bowing to the implicit pressure from his mercurial boss.
He also said teachers would be more effective defenders of children than security cards because the teachers “love the children”.
via Zero Hedge http://ift.tt/2EOsC8t Tyler Durden