Jared Kushner slams Joe Biden, claims he's been cleaning up 'messes' ex-VP left behind

Jared Kushner, a senior adviser to President Trump, said Tuesday that most of his White House work involves "cleaning up the messes" left behind by former Vice President Joe Biden.
Kushner, who married the president’s daughter Ivanka Trump a decade ago, made the remarks in an exclusive interview with News Israel 13. He was responding to comments Biden made over the weekend on CBS’s “60 Minutes,” in which the Democrat charged it was “improper” for Trump to appoint his son-in-law and daughter to senior positions in his administration.
“A lot of the work that the president’s had me doing over the last three years has actually been cleaning up the messes that Vice President Biden has left behind,” Kushner told News Israel 13. “I think President Trump is entitled to pick his team. We’ve worked with him for a long time and I think we’ve done a good job at trying to help him be successful.”

“I think President Trump is entitled to pick his team. We’ve worked with him for a long time and I think we’ve done a good job at trying to help him be successful.”
— Jared Kushner

Jared Kushner responds to questions during an interview with News Israel 13, Oct. 29, 2019. (News Israel 13)

Kushner also addressed the House Democrats' ongoing Trump impeachment inquiry, which has shed light on Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, who reportedly used his father’s name to gain a seven-figure job at one of Ukraine’s largest natural gas companies despite having no prior related worked experience. Hunter Biden worked for the company, Burisma Holdings, at the same time his father, while vice president, was seeking the ouster of a Ukrainian prosecutor who was investigating a top Burisma official.
The impeachment probe stems from a whistleblower’s complaint that President Trump, during a July phone call, asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate the Biden family’s business dealings in the country. Trump made the request while the U.S. was withholding military aid but maintains there was no quid quo pro.
Kushner insisted that the president was clear of wrongdoing.
“They’ve been trying to impeach the president for the past three years or get him out of office and they’ve been unsuccessful at that,” Kushner said. “The best thing going for the president is that he hasn’t done anything wrong, and at this point, they’ve investigated him over and over and over again, and I think the American people are sick and tired of it.”

“The best thing going for the president is that he hasn’t done anything wrong, and at this point, they’ve investigated him over and over and over again, and I think the American people are sick and tired of it.”
— Jared Kushner

“The president’s record of accomplishments is unimpeachable, and he’s going to continue to do the things that the American people care about,” Kushner continued.  “If Congress wants to be a part of the work we do to try to make the country stronger and more prosperous, we welcome them to join us. If they want to play silly games, we’ll obviously deal with that in an appropriate manner, but we’re not going to let that distract us as an administration.”
Kushner, who is Jewish, traveled to Israel on Monday where he met separately with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former military chief Benny Gantz. The two rivals were deadlocked following last month's Israeli elections, with neither able to easily form a majority coalition, raising the possibility of an unprecedented third election in less than a year. Kushner urged Gantz and Netanyahu to form a government so Israel would be able to seize on the “tremendous opportunities” in the region, including military and business partnerships with Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern nations.
“Benny was a great general in the IDF [Israeli Defense Forces] and he did a great job there and served Israel tremendously, and he seems to have a good intention to try and bring good to Israel, and hopefully he will be able to work with Prime Minister Netanyahu and find a way to move forward," Kushner told News Israel 13.
He also responded to Israeli concerns after President Trump made the call to pull U.S. troops out of Syria, a decision some critics said left the Kurds, who are American allies, vulnerable to Turkey and other forces.
“Anyone in Israel who thinks it has any implications for the U.S.-Israel relationship is badly mistaken,” Kushner said, “because under President Trump, the bond between America and Israel has been significantly strengthened and our intention is to continue to do more of the same.”
Fox News' Brooke Singman, Brie Stimson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Ilhan Omar votes 'present' on bill condemning Armenian genocide

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., on Tuesday refused to support a congressional resolution recognizing the Armenian genocide, saying it was important first to condemn the preceding "mass slaughter" of "hundreds of millions of indigenous people," as well as the "transatlantic slave trade."
Omar, in a statement explaining her vote of "present" on the resolution, also seemingly suggested that the century-old mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks may not have occurred at all. She asserted that "accountability and recognition of genocide should not be used as a cudgel in a political fight" but should instead "be done based on academic consensus outside the push and pull of geopolitics."
The comments prompted accusations that Omar, again, was seeking to communicate a bigoted message while maintaining a veneer of wink-and-nod deniability -- even as she has previously called for a boycott over alleged Israeli human-rights abuses, described the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks as an instance in which "some people did something", and asserted that "Israel has hypnotized the world."
Omar and Rep. Rashida Tlaib made history as the first Muslim women in Congress earlier this year, and within weeks, Omar was criticized by her own party for series of remarks deemed anti-Semitic -- including her claim that Jewish support in Washington was "all about the Benjamins, baby." (Tlaib, too, has also been accused of anti-Semitism in office.)
Political analyst Zaid Jilani noted that contrary to Omar's claim, the U.S. has condemned both the treatment of Native Americans and the slave trade.
"There's nothing wrong with asking that the U.S. government acknowledge human rights abuses here before we acknowledge them overseas," Jilani wrote. "The issue is, the U.S. government already did acknowledge the ones Omar is asking it to acknowledge. Didn't acknowledge the Armenian genocide at behest of Turkey."
Jilani added: "Congress has passed many resolutions condemning abuses against Native Americans and slavery. It has never passed a resolution condemning the Armenian genocide. That's why Ilhan Omar's explanation here rings hollow."
Other commentators were alternately perplexed and outraged by Omar's statement.
"Her explanation doesn’t cut it," said political scientist Ian Bremmer.
"Hard to square this approach with her support for BDS. Not a good look," wrote former George W. Bush administration official Christian Vanderbrouk, referring to Omar's support for the movement to boycott and sanction Israel for alleged human rights abuses.
"This is a bizarre explanation," journalist Yashar Ali observed.
"All lives matter?" mused Alan Cole, a senior GOP economist on Capitol Hill.
"I'm utterly confused by this," GOP political strategist Andrew Surabian wrote, asking if Omar was "suggesting here that there is no 'academic consensus' that the Armenian genocide occurred???"
The New York Post's Brooke Rogers noted that Omar's invocation of term "academic consensus" raised the possibility that Omar, like Turkey, was seeking to dispute basic facts about the genocide.
Earlier this year, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said nations accusing his country of committing genocide had their own “bloody past.”
Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed around World War I, and many scholars see it as the 20th century's first genocide.
Turkey disputes the description, claiming the toll has been inflated and considering those killed victims of a civil war, rather than casualties of genocide.
The nonbinding resolution passed 405-11 Tuesday.
Some opponents of the resolution have advanced different reasons from Omar -- arguing that formally recognizing the Armenian genocide risks angering Turkey, whose relationship is crucial to stability in the region.
But such apprehensiveness has waned with Turkey’s invasion of northeast Syria earlier this month following President Trump's abrupt withdrawal of U.S. troops from the region.
GOP Rep. Paul Gosar and Democratic Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson also voted present.
Speaking on the House floor in support of the resolution, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., said the resolution “is an important measure to set the record straight on the atrocities suffered by the Armenian people at the hands of the Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century.”
"We know what happened in this dark period of history. Between 1915 and 1923, 1.5 million Armenians were murdered. This was a genocide — and it’s important that we call this crime what it was."
There have been no plans to bring the resolution up for a vote in the Senate. A second resolution on Tuesday, imposing severe sanctions on Turkish officials and prohibiting the sale of military arms to Turkey for use in Syria, passed in the House by a 403-16 vote.
Fox News' Bradford Betz contributed to this report.

Schiff 'interrupted continually' to 'coach' latest Trump impeachment witness: Nunes

Rep. Devin Nunes, the top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, accused the panel's Democrat chairman, Rep. Adam Schiff, of coaching a Trump impeachment inquiry witness during closed-door testimony on Capitol Hill.
"I have never in my life anything like what happened today," Nunes, R-Calif., told "Hannity" on Tuesday, referring to the testimony of Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman.
The scene was unprecedented, Nunes said.
"I mean, they've been bad at most of these depositions, but to interrupt us continually to coach the witness, to decide... what we're going to be able to ask the witness."
Nunes slammed Schiff, D-Calif., for refusing to allow Republicans to not yet call witnesses of their own, which he also said has never happened to him in Congress.
"And, to see someone coach a witness, this isn't the first time that Schiff -- Schiff is very good at coaching witnesses."
He said Schiff's staff previously met with the yet-unnamed Ukraine whistleblower, again calling the entire impeachment inquiry process under Schiff and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., "unprecedented."
In a fiery news conference earlier Tuesday, other GOP lawmakers said Schiff prevented a witness in the latest impeachment hearing from answering certain questions from Republican members.
Reps. Steve Scalise, R-La., and Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, told reporters that Schiff shut down a Republican line of questioning toward Vindman.
"When we asked [Vindman] who he spoke to after important events in July -- Adam Schiff says, 'no, no, no, we're not going to let him answer that question,"' Jordan said.
Jordan went on to say that Schiff seemed to be breaking his own rules for the hearings, implying the chairman was acting almost as a "lawyer" for Vindman.
Fox News' Tyler Olson contributed to this report.

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Former acting national security adviser will not testify before Congress in impeachment probe

A former White House staffer is refusing to testify in the ongoing Democrat impeachment probe. Charles Kupperman, the deputy to former National Security Advisor John Bolton, will not provide testimony to the House Intelligence Committee.
A letter from Kupperman’s attorney said his client isn’t contesting a constitutional right to testimony, but rather it’s President Trump who’s asserting testimonial immunity to confidential advisors. The letter says if the committee’s position prevails in court then Kupperman will comply. He filed a lawsuit on Friday asking the courts how much he can cooperate after the White House invoked constitutional immunity.
Meanwhile, House Intelligence Committee chairman Adam Schiff is claiming the former national security deputy’s refusal to testify has “no basis in law.” While speaking to reporters, Schiff said it was “deeply regrettable” Kupperman didn’t appear Monday. The chairman went on to say the Intelligence Committee believes his testimony will corroborate allegations of misconduct other witnesses have already made.

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., followed by Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., left, and Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., leaves a secure area at the Capitol to speak to reporters, in Washington, Monday, Oct. 28, 2019.  (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

“I think we can infer from the White House on position to Dr. Kupperman’s testimony that they believe that his testimony would be incriminating of the president,” he stated.
Schiff added, the committee may inform Kupperman’s attorney his failure to appear may warrant a contempt proceeding against him. He called the refusal more evidence of the White House’s obstruction after a district court affirmed Congress can proceed with the inquiry.

President Trump anticipates signing ‘phase one’ trade deal with China

The American flag is seen flying alongside the flag of China. (Andy Wong/AP Photo)

Progress is being made in trade negotiations between the U.S. and China. While speaking to reporters Monday, President Trump said the deal is moving far ahead of schedule. He said the two nations could come to an agreement soon, but noted it’s not the entire trade deal — only a section of it.
“We are looking, probably, to be ahead of schedule to sign a very big portion of the China deal,” he stated. “And, we’ll call it ‘phase one,’ but it’s a very big portion.”
China sung a similar tune over the weekend with officials noting ‘phase one’ of the deal is “basically complete.” While few details surrounding the agreement have been released, President Trump said ‘phase one’ will address several concerns.
“That (phase one deal) would take care of the farmers, it would take care of some of the other things, it’ll also take care of a lot of the banking needs,” he explained.
Meanwhile, this portion of the deal is expected to be signed during the president’s visit to Chile in November. It will take place on the sidelines of the annual APEC CEO summit, where leaders of the world’s top economies will gather for two days of discussions. That event is set to take place November 14th through the 16th.

President Donald Trump departs O’Hare International Airport after speaking at the International Association of Chiefs of Police Annual Conference and Exposition, Monday, Oct. 28, 2019, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Democratic front-runner Joe Biden was reportedly denied communion by a priest at a South Carolina Catholic church over the weekend.
Biden, a lifelong Catholic, stopped by Saint Anthony Catholic Church in Florence on Sunday, but was denied Holy Communion by Father Robert E. Morey, local newspaper the South Carolina Morning News reported.
“Sadly, this past Sunday, I had to refuse Holy Communion to former Vice President Joe Biden,” Father Morey told the newspaper in a statement.
“Holy Communion signifies we are one with God, each other and the Church. Our actions should reflect that. Any public figure who advocates for abortion places himself or herself outside of Church teaching.”
“I will keep Mr. Biden in my prayers,” Morey said in the statement.
The Biden campaign did not return a request for comment on Monday night.
Biden’s stance on abortion has for decades been aligned with the more conservative wing of the Democratic party — but earlier this year he announced his opposition of the Hyde Amendment, a ban on federal funding for abortions.

Piers Morgan blasts Trump critics after al-Baghdadi raid: They 'shamed themselves and shamed their country'

Many of President Trump's critics shamed both themselves and the United States when they refused to acknowledge a White House victory after ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi died in a U.S. military raid, according to Piers Morgan.
There was a nationwide celebration when Usama bin Laden was killed under then-President Barack Obama's watch, but not so over the weekend after the ISIS leader died, Morgan told "Tucker Carlson Tonight."
"My mind went back to when Usama bin Laden was killed," he said.
"I was in New York City that night. There was widespread jubilation throughout New York, throughout Washington, throughout America. This was a unified response from a country jubilant at seeing the end of the grisly demise of the leader of Al Qaeda. Compare and contrast the reaction yesterday -- to the demise of Baghdadi."
Morgan blasted baseball fans at Nationals Park in Washington who booed Trump during his appearance there, saying people should respect the office even if they didn't like the president.
"The office of the presidency deserves more respect than I saw last night, particularly in light of what had happened a few hours earlier," he said.
"I thought the thousands of Americans who thought that was the right way to respond shamed themselves and they shamed their country," he said, adding he also read many similar responses on Twitter.
Prior to Morgan's interview, host Tucker Carlson played clips of several media personalities largely refusing to compliment Trump after the raid, including former CIA analyst Philip Mudd, who said on CNN it was wrong for the president to celebrate a death, no matter the individual.
"You do not celebrate death -- I don't care if it's a terrorist, I don't care if it's someone you hate -- a human being has died, we do not celebrate that," Mudd said.
During his interview, Morgan said he instead appreciated Trump's detailed account of al-Baghdadi's demise.
"I quite enjoyed the gory details the president gave us about that sniveling coward's last few seconds on this Earth," he remarked.
"Yesterday should've been a great day for America, a great day for the world.
"Instead, the narrative is, 'let's try to find where Trump went wrong in the way he spoke about it.'"
Morgan said many people appeared furious that Trump "may have done something right" and that they "just believe in screaming at anyone who doesn't fit their narrow worldview."

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Liz Cheney knocks Rand Paul for Syria tweet amid al-Baghdadi raid

House GOP Conference Chairwoman Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., engaged in a new Twitter war Sunday with Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., over U.S. military policy overseas amid the death of Islamic State terror leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
Paul had tweeted Saturday night: “If you want to stop the endless wars, you actually have to leave. The U.S. guarding oil in Syria will only prolong the war & bring Kurds into conflict with [Syrian President Bashar al-Assad]. Mr. President: don't listen to Lindsey Graham and Chuck Schumer and others who’ve been wrong for so long,” referring to the longtime senators.
That same evening, a largescale U.S. Special Operations forces raid on a compound in northern Syria’s Idlib Province occurred where the terrorist leader was thought to be hiding.
Cheney tweeted Sunday evening in response to Paul’s tweet: “Last night, while @randpaul was advocating withdrawal of our troops, those troops were engaged in a daring raid to kill the ISIS leader. His policy would have left the terrorist al-Baghdadi alive to behead more Americans. We should be proud of our troops and never surrender.”
Paul, a noninterventionist who has fiercely criticized the role of her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, in going to war in Iraq, did not immediately respond.
Last month, Cheney and Paul engaged in a Twitter war after former National Security Adviser John Bolton's resignation resurfaced tensions between perceived isolationists and war hawks in the Republican Party.

In an address to the nation on Sunday, President Trump said planning for the raid on al-Baghdadi’s compound began two weeks ago when the U.S. gained unspecified intelligence on al-Baghdadi's whereabouts.
The raid on al-Baghdadi’s compound was a relatively large assault by U.S. forces with a reported eight military helicopters landing in the Barisha area north of Idlib city — near the Turkish border.
Fox News' Ben Florance contributed to this report.