Trump wanted Ivanka, Kushner out of White House: Book

By Umar Farooq

WASHINGTON (AA) - U.S. President Donald Trump wanted both his daughter and son-in-law out of the White House, claims a new book by journalist Vicky Ward.

According to ‘Kushner Inc.’, which is yet to be published, Trump asked his then-Chief of Staff John Kelly to remove Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner from their positions, saying they did not "know how to play the game".

A review of the book by The New York Times outlines the incident, saying Kelly suggested to Trump that it would be difficult to fire them but later agreed with the president that they “would make life difficult enough to force the pair to offer their resignations”.

"Get rid of my kids; get them back to New York,” the president told Kelly, Ward says in her book.

But according to The Times, Trump's desire to remove them came and went in waves.

The two have since gone the distance, remaining in their roles as advisers to Trump. With Kelly having resigned in December, the couple has only gained power, The Times noted.

Ward argues they were keen on using their influence with the president to further their own ambitions.

Former top economic adviser Gary Cohn went to Trump’s daughter to voice his objections over her father’s response to the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017, in which Trump blamed “both sides” for the deadly violence that occurred when a group of white supremacists attacked anti-racism protesters.

According to Ward’s book, Cohn was dismayed with her response.

"My dad’s not a racist; he didn’t mean any of it," she said. "That’s not what he said."

Ward interviewed over 220 people over a span of two years in her research for the book, which will be published next week.