Jared Kushner Was ‘Paranoid’ About Chris Christie, Orchestrated His Firing
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and presidential adviser Jared Kushner look on during a White House meeting about opioid and drug abuse, March 29, 2017. Image by Getty Images
Jared Kushner was allegedly “paranoid” about former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie — so he had him fired, The Daily Beast reported from an excerpt of a new tell-all book.
In “The Fifth Risk,” bestselling author Michael Lewis dives into President Trump’s messy presidential transition and how it has shaped his time in office. The snippet published in the Guardian on Thursday reveals the tension between Christie and the president’s son-in-law.
After Trump won the election, Kushner urged former White House chief strategist Steven Bannon to fire Christie, Lewis wrote.
Christie was clued in early. In June 2016, he reportedly got a call from Trump’s former campaign chairman Paul Manafort.
“The kid is paranoid about you,” Manafort said, referring to Kushner.
It was a matter of familial loyalty — Christie prosecuted Kushner’s father for tax evasion in 2005, according to NJ.com. He served two years in prison.
Although Christie had denied having a strained relationship with Kushner, Lewis mentioned that he didn’t have the highest of opinions.
“Christie viewed Kushner as one of those people who thinks that, because he is rich, he must also be smart,” Lewis wrote. “Still, he had a certain cunning about him.”
The two worked together when Christie started reporting his preparations for a seat on the Trump administration to an executive committee Kushner was on, which also included Ivanka Trump, Donald Trump Jr, Eric Trump, Manafort, Steve Mnuchin and Jeff Sessions.
Later, when he asked Bannon why he got the boot, Bannon allegedly replied: “It’s really not important.”
Alyssa Fisher is a news writer at the Forward. Email her at fisher@forward.com, or follow her on Twitter at @alyssalfisher
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