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Donald Trump grilled Jared Kushner about Ivanka’s conversion to Judaism

Trump wore a yarmulke when he walked Ivanka down the aisle, Kushner wrote

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WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 29: (L-R) Senior Advisor Jared Kushner looks on as U.S. President Donald Trump speaks before signing the United States-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement (USMCA) during a ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House on January 29, 2020 in Washington, DC. The new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) will replace the 25-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with provisions aimed at strengthening the U.S. auto manufacturing industry, improving labor standards enforcement and increasing market access for American dairy farmers. The USMCA signing is considered one of President Trump's biggest legislative achievements since Democrats took control of the House in 2018. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Former US president Donald Trump grilled Jared Kushner about his daughter Ivanka’s conversion to Judaism, Kushner reveals in his forthcoming memoir.

In the new book, Trump’s Jewish son-in-law and trusted adviser opens up about his Judaism, his Shabbat observance, and Ivanka Trump’s decision to convert, a choice initially questioned by her father.

Kushner writes that his first meeting with Trump in 2007 was not smooth-sailing. At the time, Kushner was the publisher of the New York Observer weekly magazine, and Trump wrote him a letter unhappy about his position on the annual “Power List”.

Trump wrote: “Please stop sending me your paper, so I don’t have to read bullshit like this anymore!”

Two years later, Trump’s daughter Ivanka started dating Kushner, and after some time together, Ivanka told him that she would consider converting to Judaism.

“We began meeting with a rabbi and studying and practicing Shabbat together,” he wrote. “I saw that Ivanka was enjoying these rituals.”

Kushner writes that the couple spent Friday nights together eating take-away food from the 2nd Ave Deli, which was his favourite, until Ivanka offered to start cooking for the Shabbat meal.

“She loved it and quickly became an excellent chef,” Kushner writes.

As their relationship progressed and they began to discuss getting married, Kushner went to see Trump at Trump Grill in Trump Tower: “I could feel my voice shake as I managed to say that Ivanka and I were getting more serious and that she was in the process of converting.”

According to Kushner Trump replied: “Well, let me ask you a question. Why does she have to convert? Why can’t you convert?”

Kushner replied that she had made the choice herself and was comfortable with it, to which Trump then remarked: “That’s great. Most people think I’m Jewish anyway. Most of my friends are Jewish. I have all these awards from the synagogues. They love me in Israel.”

Trump then added that he hoped Kushner was serious because Tom Brady, the superstar NFL quarterback, was also courting Ivanka.

At their 2009 wedding at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey, Trump “was respectful of our Jewish traditions, and before he walked Ivanka down the aisle, he asked for a yarmulke to wear.”

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