From the blog of Scott Cushing at Times Of Israel
Jared Kushner’s book “Breaking History” is not just a best seller but is a memoir that challenges the groupthink class of political pundits who made Trump bashing into an art form. Throughout the book, Kushner demonstrates how he was able break barriers and rewrite the rule book of how Washington worked during the Trump administration.
While the son-in-law of President Donald J. Trump served as a lightning rod to beltway insiders and Washington elite, he notched impressive wins with his can-do style of public policy management. His approach threatened insiders whose existence depended on the status quo of government in our nation’s capital.
There is no doubt that Kushner’s efforts, during consequential and transformational moments in recent history, was not only successful, but meaningful.
The prologue of the book gives you a broad sketch of what makes Kushner “tick” and the perspective he brings to the pages of his story. The snapshots of the Trump Presidency he describes are not a defense of his actions, but a ringside seat to how rumors, gossip and innuendo permeate Washington.
Kushner views issues and challenges in a very direct way. The best summarization of his psyche came from a comment he made during negotiations surrounding the Abraham Accords. “In the diplomacy world, words matter. Tell both sides that we are not in the diplomacy business. We are in the results business.” That mindset has been the centerpiece of how Kushner and his team succeeded in complex issues when others tip toed around feelings, conventions and how it has always been done.
Internally, Kushner is family centered, strong in his Jewish faith and believes in forgiveness. For individuals that work with him he is the ideal person to have in a fight when you are in a fox hole pinned down with gunfire overhead. He stands firm, does not flinch and is very human.
The cesspool of corruption in mass media, elected members of Congress and handlers in the dark art of politics is unveiled during critical moments in diplomacy and public policy. At the same time, the author take responsibility for flare ups, not understanding staff turf wars and political territorial waters. Kushner owns his mistakes unlike most of Washington’s elite who are professional Monday morning quarterbacks to the football game of politics.
The day when everything changed for Jared Kushner was when his father called him to tell him he was being arrested. He drove to the courthouse where he waited and then drove his father home in a ninety-minute ride of silence that tore at his soul. When his father turned to him there was no anger. Instead, he took responsibility and ownership of the charges. Jared stayed strong throughout the ride. It was only later; he unleashed his feelings in the loneliness of his apartment.
The pages of the book outline the on and off courtship with Ivanka. Kushner gives you a glimpse of the complicated and close relationship with his father-in-law President Trump. You see the successes and failures of his daily life.
One thing is clear. Kushner’s faith is a foundation in his life and gives him his strength. Judaism centers him and reminds him of his purpose. He bluntly states that the only reason he is here today is because his grandparents survived the Holocaust. When he visited Auschwitz Concentration Camp’s corridor of death, a guide’s story of his own father who smuggled Tefillin into the camp motivates him to wrap every morning.
To understand Jared Kushner, you need to know his history and the moments in his life where he was called upon to rise to the moment. When he was given the news that he had cancer, he faced it head-on without drama and with silence. As victory laps were being taken on business deals, family matters or political issues, he would be present but never take center stage.
Relationships, communication and working with a private sector mentality were a foundation to his success. The staff that surrounded him were not just loyal, they served with a purpose and goal. Kushner consistently thought creatively and challenged conventional wisdom. He employed tactics that many cannot do and would never try. He broke conventions by speaking directly to world leaders, members of Congress and opinion leaders reminiscent of Henry Kissinger’s shuttle diplomacy tactics. He moved on from fights, conflict, and anger by not engaging and ignoring the brick bats.
A flashpoint of the book comes during a “job interview” meeting . Think about the following for a moment. How many people can collaborate with a person who worked relentlessly to put your father in jail? If that were not enough, when your father was about to be set free, the same prosecutor tried to keep him locked up behind bars because of ego. Most would not and could not. Kushner was not only able to set his feelings aside, but he also agreed to work with that individual. That man was Chris Christie. Being only human, he faced Christie in a powerful moment where he looked him in the eye and let him know how he felt. After the exchange, he moved on.
“Michael “Scott” Cushing… is [a] former Publisher and Editorial writer…” Seriously?! My goodness, this guy doesn’t even have the attention span to keep track of the subject within a single sentence to keep its subject and verb in agreement. So I guess it’s not surprising all he can focus on is the self-serving, ludicrously selective pablum of a narrative Kushner presents in his ghost-written ego book. There’s a lot Kushner conveniently left out, fabricated, or distorted. I guess he did indeed break history, or at least its truthful record.