Trump tests nepotism law in adviser pick

The president-elect chooses son-in-law Jared Kushner as a senior adviser, transition officials say, but may face opposition based on 1967 legislation.

NEW YORK — President-elect Donald Trump’s influential son-in-law Jared Kushner will join him in the White House as a senior adviser, transition officials said Monday, putting the young real estate executive in position to exert broad sway over both domestic and foreign policy.

Trump has come to rely heavily on Kushner, who is married to the presidentelect’s daughter Ivanka. Since the election, Kushner has been one of the transition team’s main liaisons to foreign governments, communicating with Israeli officials and meeting last week with Britain’s foreign minister. He’s also huddled with congressional leaders and helped interview Cabinet candidates.

His eligibility could be challenged. But Kushner lawyer Jamie Gorelick argued Monday that a 1967 law meant to bar government officials from hiring relatives does not apply to the West Wing. He cites a later congressional measure to allow the president “unfettered” and “sweeping” authority in hiring staff.

Kushner, who will not be taking a salary, will resign as CEO of his family’s real estate company and as publisher of the New York Observer, as well as divest “substantial assets,” Gorelick said. She said Kushner will recuse himself “from particular matters that would have a direct and predictable effect on his remaining financial interests.”

Ivanka Trump, who also played a significant role advising her father during the campaign, will not be taking a formal White House position, transition officials said. She is the mother of three young children, and her immediate plans are focusing on her family’s move from New York to Washington, though officials said her role could change.

Kushner, who turns 36 on Tuesday, emerged as one of Trump’s most powerful campaign advisers during his father-in-law’s often unorthodox presidential bid — a calming presence in an otherwise chaotic campaign.

Soft-spoken and press shy, he was deeply involved in the campaign’s digital efforts and was usually at Trump’s side during the election’s closing weeks.