Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of President-elect Donald Trump, has been appointed as a senior White House adviser. Transition officials have said Kushner will divest himself of large swathes of his commercial holdings.
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Who is Jared Kushner?
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US President-elect Donald Trump on Monday named his son-in-law to a position of senior adviser in his administration, even as questions swirl around the legality of the move.
Jared Kushner was a close adviser to Trump throughout his presidential campaign, and will focus on trade negotiations and Middle East issues once Trump occupies the White House, according to an official from the transition team.
In a statement announcing the move, Trump said: "Jared has been a tremendous asset and trusted adviser throughout the campaign and transition and I am proud to have him in a key leadership role in my administration.
"Kushner will work closely with chief of staff Reince Priebus and chief strategist Stephen Bannon to execute president-elect Trump's agenda," the statement said.
A lawyer for Kushner argued that a federal anti-nepotism law, which prohibits officials from appointing relatives to government positions, does not apply to him - a son-in-law. Kushner is married to Trump's oldest daughter, Ivanka.
"Mr. Kushner is committed to complying with federal ethics laws and we have been consulting with the Office of Government Ethics regarding the steps he would take," said Jamie Gorelick, a partner at the law firm of WilmerHale, in a statement. "Although plans are not finalized, Mr. Kushner would resign from his position at Kushner Companies and divest substantial assets in accordance with federal guidelines."
Gorelick added that Kushner "would recuse [himself] from particular matters that would have a direct and predictable effect on his remaining financial interests. He would also abide by federal rules requiring impartiality in particular matters involving specific parties."
The "New York Times" reported that his title could be adjusted to fit within the confines of the law.
Officials from the Trump transition team also dispelled reports that Ivanka Trump would also be taking a formal position in the White House. Her immediate focus is moving her family from New York to Washington DC, according to officials, although they did not to rule out her taking on a role in the future.
Vast real estate holdings
Kushner, like his father-in-law, is a major New York-based real estate developer with a vast web of business dealings that family pose potential conflicts of interest. Kushner Companies took part in deals worth in approximately $7 billion (6.6 billion euros) over the past decade.
A federal nepotism law was passed in 1967 after Former President John F. Kennedy appointed his brother, Robert, attorney general in 1961. The law prohibits any president from hiring a relative. Trump's advisers believe they have more wiggle room with a would-be appointment to the White House, as opposed to a Cabinet position.
"The anti-nepotism law apparently has an exception if you want to work in the West Wing, because the president is able to appoint his own staff," Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway said in December. "The president does have discretion to choose a staff of his liking."
Conway and others have cited as an example former President Bill Clinton and his decision to put his wife Hillary in charge of health care reform in the 1990s.
You're hired: Donald Trump's Cabinet
The spaces in Donald Trump's Cabinet are filling up. Most recently, the nominee for Secretary of the Interior was announced. DW takes a look at who the president-elect has tapped so far for the top jobs.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/S. Walsh
Vice President: Mike Pence
Pence (57) is an experienced politician. After working as a lawyer and conservative talk radio host, he served for 12 years in the House of Representatives before becoming governor of Indiana in 2013. The father of three has strongly opposed abortion rights and same-sex marriage throughout his career. He has described himself as "a Christian, a conservative and a Republican, in that order."
Image: Reuter/S. Morgan
Secretary of State: Rex Tillerson
The CEO of oil giant Exxon Mobil has close ties with Russian president Vladimir Putin - he was even awarded Russia's "Order of Friendship" in 2013. Despite this, and the Texan businessman's lack of experience in foreign policy, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee narrowly approved Tillerson's nomination.
Priebus (44), a lawyer and familiar face on the Wisconsin political scene, has served as director of the Republican National Committee since 2011. He has said that the Trump administration will aim to "create an economy that works for everyone, secure our borders, repeal and replace Obamacare and destroy radical Islamic terrorism."
Image: Reuters/M. Segar
Secretary of the Treasury: Steven Mnuchin
After a long career on Wall Street at Goldman Sachs, Mnuchin (53) set up a hedge fund and made millions of dollars buying and rebranding a failed mortgage lender after the 2008 crash. He has since financed several Hollywood movies. Mnuchin wants to cut taxes for businesses and the middle class and will consider public-private partnerships to fund infrastructure projects.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/C. Kaster
National Security Adviser: Michael Flynn
The retired Army general - and registered Democrat - was fired as director of the Defense Intelligence Agency in 2014. He has referred to Islamism as "a vicious cancer inside the body of 1.7 billion people on this planet" and his son, a Trump aide, recently lost his job for spreading a fake news story that claimed Hillary Clinton's allies were running a pedophile ring from a Washington pizzeria.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/M. Reynolds
Attorney General: Jeff Sessions
The Alabama Senator was one of the first members of Congress to endorse Trump. A former lawyer, Sessions (69) takes a hard line on immigration and strongly opposes legalizing of marijuana. Allegations of racism, including a former colleague's testimony that Sessions joked he thought the Ku Klux Klan were "okay, until I found out they smoked pot," cost him a potential federal judgeship in 1986.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/J. Samad
Secretary of Defense: James Mattis
During his 44-year military career, Mattis (66) earned nicknames like "Mad Dog" and "warrior monk." He led the US Central Command from 2011 to 2013, and was a key figure in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. His appointment as Defense Secretary would depend on a waiver from the Senate, as US law requires that retired military personnel wait seven years before they can take up this role.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo
Secretary of Homeland Security: John Kelly
Upon his retirement in January 2016, Kelly (66) was the longest serving Marine general in US history. As head of the US Southern Command, he was responsible for US military activity in South and Central America, which included oversight of the controversial Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba. Kelly's eldest son was killed in combat in Afghanistan in 2010.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. Balce Ceneta
Secretary of the Interior: Ryan Zinke
The Montana lawmaker and former Navy SEAL commander had been expected to run for the Senate in 2018. Zinke (55) has advocated increased energy drilling and mining on federally controlled land. While skeptical about the urgency of climate change, he does believe it is important for the United States to invest in renewable energy. He describes himself as a "Teddy Roosevelt Republican."
Image: Reuters/N. McDermid
Director, National Intelligence: Dan Coats
The former Indiana senator was US ambassador to Germany from 2001 to 2005 under the George W. Bush administration. Coats (73) is considered a mainstream Republican and served on the Senate Intelligence and Armed Services committees. A vocal critic of Russia, he pushed for Moscow to be punished for its annexation of Crimea in 2014.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/S. Walsh
Director, CIA: Mike Pompeo
The Kansas congressman is a member of the Republican Tea Party movement and a former Army tank officer. Pompeo (52) has defended the use of torture methods, such as waterboarding, and opposes the closure of the Guantanamo Bay prison. He once said that Edward Snowden, who exposed the National Security Agency's mass domestic surveillance program in 2013, deserved to receive the death penalty.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/S. Loeb
Secretary of Energy: Rick Perry
The two-time presidential hopeful said during his 2012 run that, should he get into the White House, he would scrap the Department of Energy. Perry (66), who served as governor of Texas for 14 years, sits on the board for the parent company of Dakota Access LLC, which is pushing to build the controversial Dakota Access pipeline. He once called Trump a "cancer on conservatism."
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo/P. Vernon
Chief Strategist: Stephen Bannon
The former chairman of right-wing website Breitbart News became Trump's campaign chief in August. His CV also includes stints as a naval officer, investment banker and Hollywood producer. Ben Shapiro, a former editor-at-large of Breitbart, described Bannon as "a nasty figure" and "a smarter version of Trump".
Image: Getty Images/K. Irwin
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development: Ben Carson
Carson, a retired neurosurgeon from Michigan, made his first foray into politics as one of Trump's rivals in the Republican presidential primary. During the campaign, Carson made controversial comments on topics such as evolution and climate change.
Image: Getty Images/C. Somodevilla
Secretary of Commerce: Wilbur Ross
The investor and former banker made billions in restructuring failing companies in industries such as steel and coal, later investing in troubled European banks during the financial crisis. Ross, 79, was a vocal Trump supporter during the election campaign and believes the US needs a "more radical, new approach to government."
Image: picture-alliance/newscom/J. Angelillo
US Trade Representative: Robert Lighthizer
Lighthizer served as deputy trade representative during Ronald Reagan's presidential administration. He returns to government after working as a lawyer for US steel companies for nearly three decades. Like Trump, the 71-year old has argued that the US needs to defend its economic interests against China more aggressively to reduce the US-China trade deficit.
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Secretary of Labor: Andy Puzder
Andy Puzder, chief executive of CKE Restaurants, which runs fast food chains Hardee's and Carl's Jr., has long argued against higher minimum wages and government regulation in the workplace. He has frequently criticized the new Labor Department rule that extends overtime pay to more than 4 million workers, and praised the benefits of automation in the fast food industry.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/S. Osman
Secretary of Education: Betsy DeVos
As a prominent figure in the "school choice" movement and chair of the American Federation for Children, DeVos is an advocate of charter schools, which are publicly funded but privately run. She is a long-time Republican Party donor and her father-in-law is Richard DeVos, the billionaire founder of US company Amway.
Image: Picture-Alliance/AP Photo/C. Kaster
Secretary of Transportation: Elaine Chao
In 2001, Chao was appointed Labor Secretary under George W. Bush, becoming the first woman of Asian descent to take a US Cabinet position. She previously worked in banking and as director of the Peace Corps, expanding its presence in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Chao (63) immigrated to the USA from Taiwan at the age of eight and is now married to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/C. Kaster
Secretary of Health and Human Services: Tom Price
The former orthopedic surgeon was elected to the House of Representatives in 2012 and named Budget Committee chair in 2015. Price, 62, is a staunch opponent of Obamacare, advocating a system based on medical savings accounts. Price has voted against federal funding for abortion and opposes gun control.
Image: Reuters/J. Roberts
Director, Environmental Protection Agency: Scott Pruitt
Over the past five years, the Oklahoma state attorney general - a vocal climate-change skeptic - has brought multiple lawsuits against the very organization he is now due to lead. Pruitt said: "I intend to run this agency in a way that fosters both responsible protection of the environment and freedom for American businesses.”
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/A. Harnik
Small Business Administration: Linda McMahon
The former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) spent an estimated $100 million on two unsuccessful Senate campaigns in 2010 and 2012. She has supported reduced financial regulation and a lower corporate tax rate. Trump described her as "one of the country's top female executives advising businesses around the globe."
Image: Getty Images/D. Angerer
Director of the Management and Budget Office: Mick Mulvaney
Mulvaney was voted into the House of Representatives in 2011 as a "Tea Party" Republican. As someone who opposes federal governmental spending, the 49-year old from South Carolina could help Trump defund the Affordable Care Act, but might also be at odds with his trillion dollar infrastructure investment plan.
Image: picture-alliance/ P Photo/H. Hamburg
Senior White House adviser: Jared Kushner
Donald Trump's son in law, who already served a pivotal role in his campaign, will also serve as an adviser in the Trump administration. The son of real-estate tycoon Charles Kushner is married to Trump's daughter Ivanka. He previously worked in real estate and publishing and had never worked in politics before the start of the Trump campaign.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/C. Kaster
US Ambassador to the UN: Nikki Haley
Haley (44) is serving her second term as the Governor for South Carolina. After the mass shooting at an African-American church in Charleston in 2015, Haley, who is the daughter of Indian immigrants, pushed for the confederate flag to be removed from the grounds of the South Carolina state house. She referred to Trump's proposal for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the US as "un-American."
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Reynolds
Secretary of Veterans Affairs: David Shulkin
Shulkin already served as Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Health under President Barack Obama. The 57-year old medical doctor previously also worked as Chief Medical Officer at a university hospital in Pennsylvania.
