North Korea’s Overture to Jared Kushner

I can't believe there are only 64 comments on this. It certainly seems that President Trump has created an opening for family and personal gain. I feel nauseous. God save us all.

To get back into good standing the G6 gov'ts will also need to offer the Trump crime family some ENORMOUS personal bribes.

That personal gain was the impetus for the meeting with the North Korean dictator is blatantly obvious. I'm astonished at the lack of follow-up/attention to this news item. Does the news media might feel they must leave Jared and Ivanka alone, because they are the president's family - forgetting they are an important part of the administration? We are all being dragged down a swamp to help their personal banking bottom lines. Who/where is the courage to highlight these atrocious acts?

What is going on that there are only 58 posts? Has everyone gone to another planet? That the entire United States is being used as a bargaining chip by the Trump machine is enormously important to the security of each and every American as well as the entire planet. NYT put this article on the front page where it belongs.

FOLLOW THE MONEY Trump's recounting of the "summit" with Kim has a back story. Reportedly a North Korean official wanted to schedule a meeting with Jared Kushner about building in North Korea. So the fix was in since last summer. We don't know yet whether Kim will approve such construction. But Trump's "summit" and "success" was actually a potential violation of the Constitution's emolument's clause. In fact, it could be claimed that Trump and Kushner had engaged in a criminal conspiracy to engage in what would at the present time be illegal trade with North Korea for personal profit. The whole thing stinks to high heaven. Now I'm not opposed to having US business interests involved in bringing North Korea up to speed through modernization. But clearly Trump and Kushner both seem to have had the most fundamental conflict of interest in the "summit." There seem to be no ends to which Trump will distort, twist, pervert and destroy the Constitution of the US, which he is sworn to uphold! His list of alleged HIGH CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS continues to grow!

I've been trying to think of one word to describe the Trump family (including Jared Kushner, of course) and I think it just may be this: parasites. (However, that may not be completely fair to parasites, who are only trying to survive.)

Kushner is being sent to promise the movers how much Trump and US Taxpayer money the oligarchs can expect. Umm, unless he has a specific exemption from the Commerce Department, such contacts are felonies.

Everything always starts with a backchannel through Jared Kushner.

Well now we know, again. The is one and only one motive for emperor Trump and family. Profit. Reminds me of Larry, Darrell and Darrell- anything for a buck. DJ, Jared and Ivanka no ethic too small we will break it for cash.

"In reaching out to Mr. Kushner, the North Koreans were following the example of the Chinese, who had early on identified the 37-year-old husband of Ivanka Trump as a well-connected “princeling,” someone who could be a conduit to Mr. Trump and allow them to bypass the bureaucracy of the State Department." One has to wonder what private "deals" the "princeling" is arranging for His Excellency Emperor Donald the First or for himself. The Trumps and the Kushners are motivated by money, no more and no less. They will do anything to line their own pockets, including trading on their positions as high government officials. That is already demonstrably true. Foreigners who live in societies where graft and dealing under the table are common recognize the proclivity and will use it for their own benefit. When the dirt about the Trump administration comes out, a front loader will not be sufficient to clean it all up. The "family values" Republicans in the House and the Senate turn their gaze away, and do not show any desire to inquire about such arrangements. It is time to retire those Republicans and to elect as many Democrats as possible to the House and the Senate (and to state officies as well), so that Congress will perform its constitutional duty of overseeing the activities of the Executive Branch.

Jared Kushner like his fatherinlay is another chip off the old block, fully capable of destroying a winning hand.

Kushner supports high rent hotels and homes. What is he doing going to build in NK? They are dirt poor and when the NK people realize they aren't allowed to live in his homes there will be quite upset. I bet he lies on NK's applications also.

I guess Schulze is worried that the North Korea developments might cast some scrutiny on his role in violation of the US sanctions on North Korea, since this story was obviously pitched by him to distract attention away from his business dealings. The Kushner angle is obviously him trying to cultivate allies at the White House by getting the media to give Kushner some credit for the North Korea negotiations. Whether it's actually true depends on the quality of the sourcing. While much of the info about the Trump-Kim negotiations is sourced from "current and former US officials", the Schulze role is sourced only from "people familiar with the negotiations". Wonder how many of of that group were on Schulze's payroll? As long as the Times relies entirely on anonymous sources, we have no way of knowing - but Mark Mazzetti has had numerous problems with insufficiently vetting anonymous sources and failing to fact-check them in the past.

Don't kid yourself, the "mission" is to put Kushner in touch with money ... with, I'm sure some form of "finders fee" for Trump involved.

So far the only thing that has changed is less bullying talk from the US side; the talk that was creating the crisis in the first place.

I absolutely do not understand why anyone is surprised at President Trump's very successful way of operating. What else would you expect from a brilliant student, who graduated summa cum laude from The Joseph Goebbels College of Marketing and magma cum laude from The Joseph Stalin Institute of Loyalty for his dissertation, "Using Apprentices When 'Lock Him Up' Aint Enough: The Case of Leon Trotsky."

My hope for sometime is we make a deal with China to have the NoKo government dissolve and all of Korea re-unify peacefully under Seoul. Once that is done we bring our troops home from Korea. Lastly, we have Taiwan re-unify with mainland China, a la Hong Kong. I'm 70 and hope to live long enough to see an end to the cold war in Asia which is long past due. If these bizarre back channel machinations get us there then my hat will be off to the players. In the meantime I am not optimistic about the circus in DC.

hmmm. Seems to me just in line with this Administration that Trump's next move would be to dispatch Jared and Ivanka, or heck, just send Ivanka, to work out a potential new Trump hotel and resort deal in North Korea. I mean, what could be possibly wrong with that? Just kiddin' . Although, not entirely. Stay tuned. :-)

So American slum landlord Jared Kushner who never saw a loan he didn't want to obtain is going to be the financial connector to North Korea. Is there a role for the Fox talking head who is also a slum landlord. This administration loves the dictators and hates the American and people of the world. The never ending corruption story of racism and hate. Get out ,support your progressive candidate, not a Russian candidate full of lies. That is the only way we can stop this flow of corruption from the Trump family and the swamp people. Pathetic story of greed once again.

First, Trump scraps a deal with Iran that was better thought out and implemented in every respect than his with NK. Faux News and its spin acolytes focus on the $1.4 billion “giveaway” as some sort of justification for scrapping a deal agreed to by several nations. No mention of course of the fact that the money was Iran’s in the first place which we held onto from long ago. The rest was interest on the money. Trumpettes conveniently possess no knowledge of that. Then Trump sees more Trump hotels gleaming in his besotted mind and dispatches Jared to keep family business going strong regardless of the possible consequences to the interests of the U.S. and those of the rest of the world. All of a sudden a ruthless dictator is happy to meet with a childish President who previously exchanged world-threatening insults. And Trump, “modestly” of course, thinks perhaps he ought to receive a Nobel prize. Trumpettes clap for a deal with no guarantees. There is no way that Kim Jong Un will give up nukes. He would have no bargaining chips left on the table. A long prison sentence for Trump would be far more fitting. If only it was a prison like any other and not a federal #1 with a 9-hole course outside a bungalow.

I absolutely fail to understand why anyone is surprised at President Trump's very successful modus operandi. What else would one expect from a brilliant student, who graduated summa cum laude from The Joseph Goebbels College of Marketing and magma cum laude from The Joseph Stalin Institute of Loyalty for his dissertation, "The Case of Leon Trotsky: Using Apprentices When 'Lock Him Up' Aint Enough."

To paraphrase “How to succeed in business without really trying”: “Nepotism is when your [son-in-law] is an idiot.”

I'd like to put Kushner in contact with a prison guard. This grifter is lining his pockets at our expense.

Just imagine the heads exploding if President Hillary Clinton's son in law Marc Mezvinsky was up to the same thing. Hearings and investigations would be spooling up in no time.

"Mr. Schulze, who lives in Singapore, had built a network of contacts in North Korea on trips he had taken to develop business opportunities in the isolated state." The Chinese company ZTE was fined $1.19 billion by the US for breaching North Korean sanctions. Why Mr. Schulze's company is not subjected to any fine, given that it is involved in facilitating trades with North Korea? Could that be something that Mr. Mazzetti have interest to look into?

"promising contact" in the article is defined as someone who is so greedy and so incompetent that he will take any offer to make money ...

Since when has a possible conflict of interest ever been a concern for this Administration?

"Think of it from a real estate perspective,” Mr. Trump said." Building luxury hotels and golf courses in North Korea while most of the country lacks reliable electricity is something a corrupt third world strongman would envision, along with the requisite kickbacks.

You would think the Trump administration, Jared Kushner foremost among them, would want to avoid back-channel communications with foreign dictators. This is exactly the sort of behavior that led to Kushner's involvement with the Russian investigation. You would think the family would move to avoid any hint of impropriety in international policy dealings. Sadly, no. I really can't wait for Kushner's day in court.

And hasn't our young Jared just done so well with peace in the Middle East... Oh well, at least Kushner personally benefited from all his hobnobbing with world leaders. He has joyously secured foreign loan bailouts for his own 666 building in NY. "Self-Dealing" is truly what this Trump/Kushner Clan does best!

Dear NYT, I think you buried the lead here. It has become clear why Trump is interested at all in North Korea, and it's not about world safety. Your last two paragraphs should be headline news: "In Singapore last week, Mr. Trump showed Mr. Kim a four-minute film that the American government had made, which depicted a thriving, modern future for North Korea, so long as it gave up its nuclear weapons. Mr. Trump enthused about the country’s idyllic beaches, which he said he could foresee being lined with luxury hotels and condominiums. “Think of it from a real estate perspective,” Mr. Trump said."

There is not one shred of decency within the Trump dynasty. When will this country learn that the bottom line is greed? The North Korean disgrace of a summit was a ruse, a farce, a charade. Yes, Trump wants something from Kim, but it is not world peace in the name of denuclearization. It is even beyond popularity ratings. It's money, money, money. The whole lot belong in jail with orange jump-suits. The sad thing is even there they will get VIP treatment.

Nice try NYTs- this is merely an attempt to distract from the IG investigation report. Your news is fake

Wag the Dog?

This is exactly why he appointed this nobody to this position, to wheel and deal using the Office of the Presidency as his position of strength to make money big time. It is blatantly clear that this administration is all about them enriching themselves. Corruption at it's worst.

KUSHNER: “I always thought, 'Will I go into the business, or will I not go into the business? But when my father got arrested [& imprisoned], I really didn't have a choice.” Feb 1, 2014: Jared Kushner’s interview with “The Real Deal”, regarding his father’s imprisonment. Charles Kushner pleaded guilty to 18 counts of tax evasion, witness tampering & illegal campaign donations.

The world knows that the way to Trump's corruption is through his family.

The swamp channel. Seriously.

I guess there aren't many hotels and golf courses in Pyongyang.

Diplomacy is supposed to be distinct from the private sector. Novices and unelected people should not be given such influence. International relations are a lot more complicated than whether there's profit to be made or personal influence to be wielded.

What a farce. . Kushner has no qualification whatsoever for a post in the White House. Get him out of there. The only reason someone in China or NK would approach him is because they think they can buy him and, by extension, Trump. . Get rid of this guy. He should not be negotiating on behalf of the United States.

It's somewhat ironic and perhaps even comical to think that North Korea might be led into the community of nations by showing Kim Jung Un that personal gain could also be obtained from his position of power through the shenanigans of so-called democratic countries. To a man like Kim, the reality of politics driven by money would be much more appealing than any textbook variety taught to school children. See: RevolutionOfReason.com

Those condos Trump envisioned on the NK coast will be built by Jared and Ivanka. This is what Trump calls negotiations.

The Con Don and his Robber Baron brethren - including his offspring and their families - don't even try to hide their treason. Like all good Mafia boys and girls they think laws and regulations do not apply to them. They think they are above the law and taxes. WE THE PEOPLE do not agree and WE will collectively stop them at the ballot polls and through the Socially Conscious Women and men we elect/hire. WE join Investigator Mueller and every state AG and other legal experts who are after them. Together we can purge the International Mafia Top 1% Global Financial Elite Robber Baron/Radical religion Good Old Boys' cabal from OUR governments at all levels. WE are the only ones how can/will stop them and now is the time.

Am I surprised? In a word, no. The absolute 180 degree turn Trump took from threatening “little Rocketman” with “fire and brimstone” to “his people love him” and “we have a very good relationship” is telling of probable backroom deals to benefit the Trump family. The statement Trump made about seeing condos along those beautiful beaches paints a picture of a president exploiting his position to increase his personal wealth. No wonder Pompeo took exception to being questioned about the details of the “agreement” Trump made with Kim. I must consider the possibility Trump is alienating our allies because he and his family weren’t able to secure any personal deals in exchange for the US reducing or eliminating tariffs. Welcome to the pay-to-play administration.

Absolute "fake news"! Kushner was sent to have the family start dealing with the North Koreans.

“Over the past three administrations, the North Korean leadership has used intermediaries to try to land a summit with the American president and to bypass normal diplomatic channels,” said Michael J. Green, who worked on North Korea during the George W. Bush administration. It came as no surprise that Pyongyang was delighted to hear how Trump heaped praise on Kim Jong-un on several occasions throughout his campaign since January 2016. Later in June he offered to meet Kim, in order to highlight his differences with Hillary Clinton. Gabriel Schulze “approached the Trump administration last summer with an unusual proposition: The North Korean government wanted to talk to Jared Kushner,” because Trump once again said on May 1, 2017 that he would be “honored” to meet Kim “under the right circumstances” and have a burger with him. Kushner, however let Mike Pompeo, who led the CIA then, take care of the request, because he was at loggerheads with the State Department chief, Rex Tillerson. He was probably also not interested in North Korea, an – in his eyes – impoverished country.

This is strictly a pay-for-play administration. Jared Kushner is as likely to put in motion a back-channel conduit between unfriendly countries as I am. As has been well-documented, the presidential son-in-law is a lightweight in every way. He has no diplomacy background and his financial acumen borders on the laughable and may be under criminal scrutiny. The reports of his security clearance issues tell us that he is out of his depth and looks to the presidential shore for a lifeline. As for American citizens living abroad, the patriotic place to begin an inquiry such as this would have been at the American embassy in Singapore. Given that many ambassdorial posts under Trump have gone vacant, nevertheless, a law-abiding American citizen would contact the Department of State through diplomatic channels rather than not-so-subtly levering an inquiry for a possible future off-the-books benefit. This rancid administration is so for sale. Quickly! When does the bidding begin?

“….While Mr. Trump has said that “there is no longer a nuclear threat from North Korea,” he extracted no hard concessions from the North’s leader, and later embraced him as a strong ruler while minimizing Pyongyang’s deplorable human rights record.” This is the beginning of negotiations. North Korea has agreed to stop testing nuclear bombs. “No longer being a nuclear threat” is a good thing. I dislike Trump, but find it disturbing that people who go on about how crazy he is, would rather a continuation of brinkmanship with North Korea. For decades North Korea has offered to stop the pursuit of nuclear bombs in exchange for stopping our stopping war games on their borders. The South Korean people elected a President that was for peace with North Korea, fortunately Trump went along. We should be glad that Pyongyang did not bring up our human rights record. A torturer was elected, backed by both parties, to head the CIA. In Flint we are poisoning our citizens with lead tainted water. Invading Iraq, where hundreds of thousands dead and more suffering . Overthrowing Libya, once the richest country in Africa, where there are now slave markets. Support for Netanyahu’s genocide in Gaza. Backing the Wahhabist Saudi Arabia, such as in Yemen, where thousands of civilians are dead and millions are suffering may die in the blockade of food and medicine.

Is he scoping out the beaches for the best location of Trump tower Pyongyang?

We are nothing but pawns in the Trump family's goal of making as much money as possible while they can. Their Russia love is about money; no one in the world will give the Trumps money so they want to ensure that spigot doesn't close. Their greed isn't even veiled anymore. They gin up their base to feed the ego and deflect and focus on making themselves as rich as they can. They could care less about our country and the people in it.