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Jared Kushner bags book deal amid Trump’s clash with publishing industry

Ivanka Trump’s husband’s memoir to reveal ‘truth about what happened behind closed doors’

Louise Hall
Wednesday 16 June 2021 12:21 BST
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Jared Kushner calls US coronavirus response a success

Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of former president Donald Trump and one of his top White House advisers during his administration, has landed a book deal covering his time in office.

The husband of Ivanka Trump is set to release his memoir in early 2022, with the book expected to touch on the Middle East and criminal justice reform.

A conservative branch of HarperCollins Publishers, Broadside Books, has signed the deal with Mr Kushner but financial terms have not been disclosed.

“His book will be the definitive, thorough recounting of the administration – and the truth about what happened behind closed doors,” Broadside announced on Tuesday.

Mr Kushner, 40, is said to have already begun writing the memoir, which will cover a broad portfolio of issues reflective of the vast array of projects he undertook while working in the White House.

He was a central figure in Mr Trump’s administration in normalisation of relations between Israel and the wider Middle East and in handling the coronavirus pandemic.

The appointment of Mr Kushner to such pivotal projects in the administration faced backlash from critics who argued that he did not have any prior political or diplomatic experience.

Mr Kushner also became the subject of numerous controversies such as his financial dealings, potential conflicts of interests and the administration's management of coronavirus.

The announcement of Mr Kushner’s book deal comes amid continued questions over Mr Trump is yet to announce a similar publishing deal, as is typical of a former president.

This week, Mr Trump and the publishing industry came to blows, with the former president calling them “sleezebags” following ongoing reports that he can’t secure a book deal himself.

Many publishing experts have long speculated that Mr Trump would find it more difficult to sign a lucrative book deal due to his controversial nature.

These suspicions were apparently further cemented following his continued refusal to accept the result of the 2020 election culminating in the 6 January riots on the US Capitol.

Politico reported this week that top industry professionals see taking on Mr Trump’s book as a risky investment and a “fact-checking nightmare”.

However, Mr Trump insisted to Politico that “two of the biggest and most prestigious publishing houses have made very substantial offers”, which he had rejected.

Top publishers and editors at the “Big Five” publishing houses purportedly told the outlet that they had not heard about such potential book offers.

There have also been reports that top publishers are even more fearful of widespread industry and public backlash in taking on the books of high-profile Trump officials.

Thousands of Simon & Schuster employees and authors signed an open letter this spring condemning the publisher’s decision to sign up former Vice President Mike Pence.

The former president, however, insists that while he is “writing like crazy” for the possibility of a book deal down the line, right now, he is working on a “much more important project”.

Additional reporting by the Associated Press

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