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This transcript documents how high-level U.S. figures and members of the Trump family have intertwined political role, private business interests, and international dealings.
- Jared Kushner, though not a formal government employee, participated in peace talks with Iran in Pakistan as part of a U.S. delegation led by Vice President J. D. Vance and Middle East envoy Steve Wittkoff, presenting himself as “a volunteer” rather than an official adviser. His full-time job is running Affinity Partners, a multibillion-dollar venture capital firm that has raised billions from the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar. Kushner founded Affinity Partners in 2021 after leaving the White House.
- Kushner maintained a close relationship with Mohammed bin Salman, and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund invested $2 billion into Kushner’s fund after he left the administration. When Donald Trump returned to the White House in 2025, Kushner and Ivanka Trump did not return to Washington. Last summer, Kushner helped work on the war in Gaza, meeting regional leaders and brokered a peace agreement to end fighting and secure hostage releases. He and Wittkoff then traveled to Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin about a ceasefire in Ukraine.
- In Davos, Switzerland, Kushner accompanied his father-in-law on a trip to the World Economic Forum. Regulatory filings show Affinity Partners reporting over $6.1 billion in assets, about 99% from non-U.S. investors, with most funds tied to Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar. Affinity Partners indicated it did not intend to take additional capital while Kushner volunteers for the government, but discussions with Saudi Arabia’s PIF were reported to be about raising new money. Democrats pressed the White House to explain potential conflicts of interest and whether Kushner’s influence benefited his private finances.
- Kushner is not alone in expanding business interests; Don Jr. and Eric Trump have increasingly invested in various ventures. Since 2024, they have pursued interests in emerging technologies like cryptocurrency, and in drone technology, with at least three drone company investments. The latest deal involved PowerUS, a drone maker planning to merge with a golf-course holding company backed by the Trumps to create a new publicly traded company. PowerUS aims to develop military drones and pitch interceptors to Gulf nations to counter Iranian drone attacks, potentially aligning with Pentagon drone initiatives.
- The Trumps’ business activities extend to nuclear fusion through a merger that would create one of the first publicly traded fusion companies, with PowerUS and other ventures positioning themselves to profit from a conflict environment. The Trump media group also plans to merge with TAE Technologies, a fusion power company valued at over $6 billion, with a plan to construct a utility-scale fusion plant later this year. Don Jr. has joined boards of four companies and advised six others since 2024, while Eric and Don Jr. are not government officials and are not subject to federal ethics rules or disclosure requirements.
- Overall, the narrative underscores the rapid expansion of the Trump family’s private sector interests concurrent with geopolitical activity and policy-making, highlighting perceived gaps in ethics rules and potential conflicts of interest.