Tom Friedman: ‘Jewish Summer Camp’ Is Jared Kushner’s Mideast Peace Credential

Image by Getty Images

By Sam Kestenbaum January 17, 2017

Jared Kushner, real estate developer and presidential son-in-law, is about to play an important role in peace negotiations in the Middle East.

His father-in-law Donald Trump praised him as “a good boy” who will pull off an “Israel agreement that no one else would pull off,” and a prominent New York Times pundit agrees, sort of, at least about the first part.

Thomas Friedman, former Jerusalem Bureau Chief and author “From Beirut to Jerusalem,” belittled Kushner’s qualifications during an interview with John Kerry, the secretary of state.

“His expertise seems to be that he once went to Jewish summer camp,” @tomfriedman tells @JohnKerry of Kushner becoming Trump’s peace envoy.

— Michael Wilner (@mawilner) January 17, 2017

Email Sam Kestenbaum at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter at @skestenbaum

Sam Kestenbaum is a contributing editor and former staff writer for the Forward. Before this, he worked for The New York Times and newsrooms in Sana, Ramallah and Beijing. Contact him at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter at @skestenbaum and on Instagram at @skestenbaum.

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO