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The French establishment has reacted with a mixture of resignation and muted disdain to President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of real estate developer, pardoned felon and family connection Charles Kushner as US ambassador to France.
Kushner is the father of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, who held various prominent positions in his first administration. The 70-year-old real estate executive was a major donor to Trump’s 2024 campaign.
He was also granted a presidential pardon at the end of Trump’s first term after being convicted of multiple counts of tax evasion, campaign finance violations and witness tampering, for which he spent time in prison. It was released in 2006.
“He is an outstanding business leader, philanthropist and deal maker, who will be a strong advocate for representing our country and its interests,” Trump he wrote on his platform Truth Social on Saturday when he announced his choice for ambassador, which will have to be confirmed by the US Senate.
The news was met with skepticism on the other side of the Atlantic. “I recommend you read his biography. ‘Juicy’ as the Americans would say. . . Needless to say, he does not know our country. At least they will have access to the president. We console ourselves as best we can,” former French ambassador to the US Gérard Araud wrote on X.
“Does he at least speak French?” one commenter asked. “Obviously not,” Araud replied. Araud later added: “In the frenzy of Trump’s nominations, an almost total contempt for human respect, custom and law is expressed.”
François Heisbourg, senior adviser on Europe at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, asked if France would refuse to approve “the nomination of this sad character” to X. “Although rare, this type of refusal is part of the diplomatic prerogative of sovereign states.”
One French banker simply responded with an eye-rolling emoji when asked for his opinion on the Kushner selection.
Candidates for US ambassadorships, especially for sought-after posts like the one in Paris, are often political donors or political allies of US presidents. Among them was Howard Leach, a food processing magnate who spoke no French but was appointed ambassador by George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005.
In his first term, Trump sent Jamie McCourt – a campaign donor who once owned the LA Dodgers baseball team with her now-divorced husband – as his envoy to Paris. However, the appointment of a convicted felon and the family ties are highly unusual even by the standards of recent US diplomatic appointments.
The first US envoy to take that post was Benjamin Franklin. Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe were also in the role.
The nomination comes at a complex time for US-French relations, as Trump pressures European allies to significantly increase defense spending. During his campaign, he also cast doubt on America’s continued support for Ukraine’s war effort against the Russian invasion, while France was a vocal supporter of Ukraine. Trump claimed he would end the conflict in a day, without specifying how.
President Emmanuel Macron has tried to use charm and personal rapport to smooth relations with Trump during his first term in the White House, but it has often been insufficient to bridge the gap on issues ranging from the role of NATO to Middle East policy or climate accords. Macron is now also in a much weaker position politically, because he lost the early elections he called this summer.
