John Oliver Explains Why Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner Aren’t Going to Save the White House

“If they are the reason you are sleeping at night, you should probably still be awake.”


On the latest Last Week Tonight, John Oliver challenged the popular belief that President Donald Trump’s closest advisers, his daughter Ivanka Trump and son-in-law Jared Kushner, are moderating forces in the White House. According to Oliver, Americans should be concerned, because despite the incredible level of power the couple wields within the administration, the two have little to no actual political experience.

He began by specifically calling out Ivanka’s history of publicly supporting progressive issues, such as paid maternity leave and climate change, while standing by her father, as his administration sets out to defund Planned Parenthood and limit the role of science and evidence-based policies in government.

“The assumption that many of us have that she disagrees with him isn’t actually based on much,” Oliver said.

Oliver then questioned what qualifications Kushner may or may not have to merit his increasingly stacked White House duties, which range from reforming veteran care to brokering peace in the Middle East.

“If they are the reason you are sleeping at night, you should probably still be awake.”

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DONALD TRUMP & DEMOCRACY

Mother Jones was founded to do journalism differently. We stand for justice and democracy. We reject false equivalence. We go after stories others don’t. We’re a nonprofit newsroom, because the kind of truth-telling investigations we do doesn’t happen under corporate ownership.

And we need your support like never before, to fight back against the existential threats American democracy faces. Fundraising for nonprofit media is always a challenge, and we need all hands on deck right now. We have no cushion; we leave it all on the field.

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