In the News

Brett Samuels

A group of House Democrats is reportedly asking the FBI to investigate whether White House senior adviser and President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner leaked classified information to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman.

Six House Democrats wrote a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray following a report in The Intercept that stated Mohammad bin Salman told confidants that he discussed with Kushner certain Saudi leaders who are disloyal to the crown.

“We request the FBI open an immediate investigation to determine if these reports are accurate and to explore the extent to which information and sources may have been compromised,” the letter states, CNN reported Thursday.

Democratic Reps. Ted Lieu (Calif.), Gerry Connolly (Va.), Don Beyer (Va.), Pramila Jayapal (Wash.), Peter Welch (Vt.) and Ruben Gallego (Ariz.) all signed the letter.

A spokesman for Kushner’s lawyers told CNN that the allegations cited in the letter have been “debunked as false many times,” and called the request for an investigation “frivolous.”

Democrats have peppered Kushner with criticism since he joined the administration, with many questioning whether his family's financial dealings conflict with his expansive White House portfolio. Kushner is tasked with negotiating peace in the Middle East and maintaining relations with Mexico, among other duties.

House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Democrats recently asked the White House Counsel's Office to review millions of dollars in loans from two companies to Kushner's family's real estate company after he met with executives from those companies in the White House. The counsel's office confirmed it had started a probe.

Kushner was one of the White House officials who had their security clearance downgraded last month from "top secret" to "secret." Many others lost their clearance entirely in a crackdown over criticism on how the administration handles its background checks.

http://thehill.com/homenews/house/380837-house-democrats-call-for-fbi-to-probe-into-kushners-ties-to-saudi-crown-prince