Who’s Jared Kushner Talking To? Some People You Might Not Have Guessed

Image by Getty Images
You may never have heard the reticent Jared Kushner speak, but he’s apparently talking to a half-dozen confidants and friends about what to do with his new-found power in Washington, D.C.
According to Politico, Kushner’s circle of phone buddies – some of whom he speaks to daily – include former Ted Cruz operative Jeff Roe, media empire king Rupert Murdoch, Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker and his attorney, former Clinton administration alum Jamie Gorelick. But family’s not cut out of the equation for billionaires and political strategists – Charlie Kushner, Jared’s dad and founder of the Kushner real estate firm, also is in regular contact with his son.
Kushner has been a largely tight-lipped White House supremo, almost never granting interviews or speaking in public – and that has fed palace intrigue about his role in the administration and what he really thinks. Some have grouped him and his wife in the moderate wing of the Trump White House, as socially liberal New Yorkers, but he has also at times embraced hardline stands.
Kushner has drifted away from some of his New York real estate friends since arriving in D.C., leaving some feeling puzzled, Politico reported. “If I were him, I would slink away,” said one about Kushner’s work in the Trump administration. “I think his natural instincts are not as a Trump supporter. But the opposite has happened.”
Contact Daniel J. Solomon at [email protected] or on Twitter @DanielJSolomon
The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Most Popular
- 1
Fast Forward Why the Antisemitism Awareness Act now has a religious liberty clause to protect ‘Jews killed Jesus’ statements
- 2
News School Israel trip turns ‘terrifying’ for LA students attacked by Israeli teens
- 3
Fast Forward The invitation said, ‘No Jews.’ The response from campus officials, at least, was real.
- 4
News Why Zohran Mamdani believes he’ll win over Jewish voters, as Israel critic surges to second behind Cuomo in NYC mayoral race
In Case You Missed It
-
Fast Forward A ‘Golden Dome for America,’ inspired by Israel, is part of Trump’s 2026 budget request
-
Books How Jews shaped the Western – and how the Western shaped Jews
-
Culture Cardinals are Catholic not Jewish — so why do they all wear yarmulkes?
-
Fast Forward Halal restaurant opening in Congress is like ‘Muslim conquest of Jerusalem,’ says GOP congressman
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
Republish This Story
Please read before republishing
We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines.
You must comply with the following:
- Credit the Forward
- Retain our pixel
- Preserve our canonical link in Google search
- Add a noindex tag in Google search
See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.
To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.