Big news in the Times this weekend was about another secret meeting between Hakeem Jeffries and Jared Kushner that left both MAGAs and Democrats at the base scratching their heads. It was at least the second of such back-channel meetings between the two.
The meeting was held in a private space in New York City, offered up by a mutual friend of the two men. I would bet, very rich friends. What possibly could the largely discredited House minority leader and President Trump’s son-in-law have to meet about as midterm elections draw near?
Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Annie Karni suggest that they discussed “housing, immigration and the high cost of living.” I doubt it. The meeting was unusual and sensitive, conducted through a mutual friend instead of through formal channels. That alone tells you it wasn’t about rising rents in New York.
I’m guessing it was about how to stop the socialist/progressive electoral tide and to defend Israel. That’s their common ground.
Jeffries has spent years trying to contain his party’s left flank, and he’s one of the most reliably pro‑Israel Democrats in leadership.
Kushner, who is not a government official, is still one of the architects of Trump’s Middle East policy and remains deeply involved in Israel strategy. He’s also financially benefited from the same Middle Eastern regimes he has been negotiating with on Trump’s behalf. His private equity firm, Affinity Partners, is overwhelmingly funded by billions of dollars from Gulf sovereign wealth funds, even as he has been acting as a de facto U.S. negotiator in Middle East crises.
Both men have strong ties to pro‑Israel donors and a shared interest in preventing a left‑wing foreign‑policy realignment. There’s also a shared desire to keep Israel from becoming a partisan liability
The meeting came as nearly all polls showed Republicans losing in the midterms, and revealed how members of Trump’s inner circle are strategizing about what a Democratic majority next year could look like. Jeffries, with dwindling support at the base of his own party, is looking for love in all the wrong places.
Weekend Quotables: 3 Guys Named Mark
Mark Lynch, Council on Foreign Relations
The American Middle East is finished. — Foreign Affairs
Mark Cuban
"James Talarico. Let's go. I'm a big fan. He's honest, trustworthy, he cares. He'll do the right thing as opposed to the politically expedient thing. To Texans, do what's best for Texas. You've been voting for Republicans all these years, what have they done for you?"
Cuban rarely endorses Democrats anymore. Since Harris’s 2024 loss, he’s been openly disillusioned with the party. Talarico is one of only two Democrats he praises consistently (the other is NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani). — Pivot Podcast
Mark Carney
“You’re at war when you’re attacked, and we got attacked,” the Canadian prime minister told reporters in Ottawa. — Guardian
… Plus Carlos & Chuy
Carlos Martinez
One can disagree with various aspects of Iran’s domestic politics. The question at hand is different: where do we stand in the global struggle against imperialism? Which side of the barricade are we on? Do we support a criminal war of aggression, or the resistance to it? Do we support the genocide in Gaza, or the country that has been the Palestinian resistance’s most consistent state ally for nearly half a century? — A response to The Guardian’s open letter
Jesús “Chuy” García (D-IL) at the Panamerican Congress
Garcia spoke on the climate crisis, emphasizing that it is inherently regional and inseparable from democratic and peace struggles.
“It’s their timeline we are playing with when governments refuse to act,” García added. “And as powerful corporations use right-wing allies to block meaningful reform, their advocacy is deeply entwined with the themes of democracy and peace.” — CEPR
Superb analysis of the Jeffries and Kushner. Clear & Concise. No BS.