‘WHO IS THIS?’

Jared Kushner Is Running ‘Shadow’ Coronavirus Task Force and Causing Confusion, Officials Say

The team, consisting of private industry representatives and government allies, is reportedly making requests outside of the regular response efforts.

President Trump’s son-in-law and White House adviser Jared Kushner created his own coronavirus team to work alongside the official coronavirus task force, The Washington Post reports. The team reportedly consists of Kushner’s government allies and individuals from private industry who are focused on setting up drive-through testing sites and delivery of health care supplies. However, Kushner’s team has reportedly sowed confusion within the Trump administration—with some calling it a “shadow task force” that makes requests outside of the regular coronavirus response efforts. “We don’t know who these people are,” one official told the Post. “Who is this? We’re all getting these emails.”

Kushner was reportedly pulled into the coronavirus effort last week, at the request of Vice President Mike Pence’s chief of staff. In an interview, Kushner said his goal was to bring an “an entrepreneurial approach” to the pandemic response. “We’re getting things done in record speeds and are doing everything possible to avoid damage and mitigate the negative impacts,” he said. “In America, some of our best resources are in our private sector.” A spokeswoman for Pence said the vice president and Kushner were in constant contact, speaking to each other “ten times a day.” Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, said Kushner has been “essential” to the effort and in bringing private sector “insights.”