OTTAWA/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Robert Lighthizer was the public face of arduous, year-long talks to rework NAFTA, but as he savored a successful conclusion in the White House Rose Garden on Monday, the U.S. trade representative singled out another man as the deal’s architect. FILE PHOTO: White House senior advisor Jared Kushner listens as U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a dinner to honor evangelical leadership in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S. August 27, 2018. REUTERS/Leah Millis “I’ve said before, and I’ll say again, this agreement would not have happened if it wasn’t for Jared,” Lighthizer told reporters. The 70-year-old veteran negotiator was referring to Jared Kushner, more than 30 years his junior and Donald Trump’s son-in-law, whom the president had asked to help out on trade early in the presidency, especially on Canada and Mexico. While Kushner’s time in the White House has been turbulent – Chief of Staff John Kelly temporarily stripped him of his security clearance earlier this year and he has been criticized for his dealings with the Middle East – his role in keeping the North American Trade Agreement afloat was fundamental, multiple sources said. A 37-year-old real estate tycoon married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka, Kushner has the trust of his father-in-law, and crucially, is close to Lighthizer, a Canadian source with knowledge of the talks said. His friendship with Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray, whom he knows from Wall Street, helped diffuse several blowups in that relationship and get a U.S.-Mexican deal over the finish line in August, another source close to the talks said. “The deal fell apart more than once. And in every occasion it was one person that always found a way to put it back together: Jared Kushner,” Videgaray told Reuters. Similarly, from early on in the negotiations, two of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s most trusted advisers – chief of staff Katie Telford and private secretary Gerald Butts – forged ties with Kushner, Hassan Yussuff, president of the Canadian Labour
Click Read More to go to where the original article came from which helped to generate this article preview for commentary unto which we give FULL credit to the original author. See disclaimer:
We post the latest and greatest in liberty-themed news, debate, and commentary! Our goal is to have an open discussion regarding current events going on in the world. FAIR USE NOTICE: The use of media materials featured on this channel is protected by the Fair Use Clause of the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, which allows for the rebroadcast of copyrighted materials for the purposes of commentary, criticism, or education. If any copyright owner has an issue or concern with a specific article or the statutory 25%-of-article rule, please send us an e-mail to request prompt removal or other arrangements.
Click here to go to TrumpShop.net and get the latest political clothing, accessories, and more!
Click here to go to Seek Liberty Youtube Channel and watch the latest liberty loving videos out there!