(CNN) — Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law and close adviser, recently met with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to discuss ways the White House can collaborate with Democrats on key issues, a source familiar with the meeting told CNN on Sunday.
The pair gathered privately in New York to discuss such key issues as immigration, housing and the cost of living, the source said. Kushner and Jeffries had previously worked together on The Step Act, a law passed with bipartisan support in 2018 that sought to reduce the federal prison population by, among other things, easing mandatory minimum sentencing requirements for certain violations.
During their meeting, which occurred several weeks ago and was first reported by The New York Times on Sunday, Kushner suggested that Jeffries should also meet with White House chief of staff Susie Wiles.
CNN has reached out to the White House for comment on the meeting.
Jeffries has emerged as the front-runner to become House speaker if Democrats win the majority in the midterms. The party is bullish on that possibility, due to President Donald Trump’s sinking approval ratings amid the Iran war and economic concerns underscored by the escalating national debt, which recently reached $40 trillion.
“The American people want bold change and that’s what House Democrats will deliver,” Jeffries said in a statement provided to CNN. “In every conversation that we have with the Trump administration, we will continue to make it explicitly clear that the affordability crisis is not a hoax and nothing short of transformational policy change is acceptable.”
GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson on Sunday downplayed the notion that the meeting signaled an acknowledgement by Trump that he might have to work with a Democratic majority during the next two years.
“I’m telling you, we’re going to defy history and hold this majority,” Johnson said on Fox News, explaining that Republicans see a path toward keeping their razor thin margin over Democrats.
Kushner, he said, “is a smart guy and he hedges his bets.” But, the GOP leader added, the president’s son-in-law is not involved in “day-to-day” White House operations.
Jeffries has emerged as a vocal opponent of Trump in his second term, frequently bashing the president in television interviews and press conferences. He has not ruled out potentially impeaching Trump if House Democrats hold the majority next year, though he has repeatedly insisted the party is focused on lowering costs for Americans that he argues have been driven up by the president’s policies.
The-CNN-Wire
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