House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Jared Kushner privately discussed possible areas of cooperation on housing, immigration and the cost of living even as Jeffries and President Donald Trump publicly trade attacks ahead of elections that could put the New York Democrat in line for the speakership.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries privately met with Jared Kushner in New York City in recent weeks for a wide-ranging discussion about housing, immigration and the cost of living, opening an informal channel between two figures with longstanding ties even as the political fight between Democrats and President Donald Trump intensifies ahead of the November midterms.
The meeting was not described as a negotiation and produced no announced agreement. Instead, Jeffries, D-N.Y., and Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and an informal presidential adviser, explored potential areas where Democrats and the administration might eventually find common ground, according to The New York Times, which cited five people familiar with the gathering.
The conversation carries added political significance because Jeffries would be positioned to become House speaker if Democrats win control of the chamber in November. Such an outcome would make him one of the central figures in determining whether a divided government could reach agreements with Trump or instead become consumed by investigations, funding disputes and partisan confrontations.
Neither Jeffries’ office nor a representative for Kushner had confirmed the meeting as of Sunday.
The two met in a private New York City location made available by a mutual friend, according to a person familiar with the discussion. Rather than working through specific legislative language or negotiating a formal arrangement, they spoke broadly about policy issues that could become relevant if control of Congress changes.
The relationship between Jeffries and Kushner predates Trump’s second administration.
They remained in contact after working together on criminal justice legislation during Trump’s first term. During their latest conversation, Kushner also suggested that Jeffries meet with White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, potentially creating another line of communication between Democratic congressional leadership and Trump’s inner circle.
The private outreach presents a sharp contrast with the public rhetoric surrounding Jeffries and Trump.
Trump has repeatedly attacked the Democratic leader and in May called him a “low-IQ thug.”
In a Truth Social post, Trump also described Jeffries as “a danger to our Country.”
Jeffries has responded with accusations of corruption against Trump and has made government accountability part of his case for returning Democrats to power.
During a July campaign appearance in Pennsylvania, Jeffries pledged that Democrats would “hold the crooks accountable” if voters give the party control of the House, a campaign message first reported by The Washington Post.
The rhetoric leaves Jeffries navigating two potentially competing roles: leading an opposition party campaigning aggressively against Trump while also positioning himself to govern alongside the president should Democrats win the House.
Major policy differences remain between the sides despite the Kushner conversation.
Housing is one potential area for cooperation, but the administration and Congress have already clashed over legislation on the issue.
Trump declined to sign a bipartisan housing bill this summer because the Senate had not approved the SAVE America Act. The housing legislation nevertheless became law without the president’s signature.
Immigration presents another possible opening but also a history of failed negotiations.
Trump has repeatedly indicated that he is willing to consider an immigration agreement with Democrats, yet no comprehensive deal has emerged. During the 2024 election cycle, Trump urged Republicans to reject a bipartisan Senate border security agreement, underscoring the political difficulties surrounding any cross-party immigration compromise.
Trump’s comments about Jeffries, however, have not always been hostile.
When Punchbowl News asked Trump this month about the possibility that Jeffries could become speaker, the president said, “I’d probably get along with him very well.”
Trump pointed to his only face-to-face meeting with Jeffries during his second term, an Oval Office meeting last fall involving the government shutdown.
The private Kushner meeting suggests that communication has continued outside the more combative public exchanges between the president and Democratic leadership.
In a statement to the Times, Jeffries did not acknowledge that he had met with Kushner. He instead criticized what he characterized as a Republican my-way-or-the-highway style of governing and said Democrats were seeking transformational changes to address the cost of living.
Jeffries has also stopped short of committing Democrats to another attempt to impeach Trump should they regain control of the House.
Asked last month about impeachment and other possible actions against the administration, Jeffries said Democrats had “not ruled anything in and not ruled anything out in terms of accountability.”
That ambiguity could become increasingly important if Democrats capture the House.
A Jeffries-led majority would face pressure from Democratic voters and lawmakers demanding aggressive oversight of the Trump administration while simultaneously assuming responsibility for legislation needed to keep the federal government operating.
Government funding deadlines, immigration policy, housing affordability and the broader cost of living could all require negotiations with the White House even as Democratic committees potentially pursue investigations of the president and his administration.
The Kushner conversation therefore occurred against two very different political realities: an intensely adversarial midterm campaign being conducted in public and a quieter effort behind the scenes to determine whether any basis for governing cooperation could survive after Election Day.
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