Overview

Charles Kushner (born May 16, 1954, Elizabeth, New Jersey) is a real estate developer and founder of Kushner Companies, currently serving as the United States Ambassador to the French Republic and the Principality of Monaco. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on May 19, 2025, and sworn in on July 11, 2025.

Kushner is the father of Jared Kushner, senior advisor to President Trump during both his first and second administrations and husband of Ivanka Trump. Charles Kushner is the first U.S. ambassador to France in the modern era to have served federal prison time for felony convictions — having pleaded guilty in 2004 to 18 federal counts including tax evasion, witness retaliation, and illegal campaign contributions before being pardoned by President Trump in December 2020. His appointment has drawn sustained scrutiny from legal scholars, Democratic senators, European diplomats, and his own prosecutor, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.

Background

Charles Kushner was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey, in 1954, the son of Jewish immigrants who survived the Holocaust. His father, Joseph Kushner, built a modest portfolio of approximately 4,000 New Jersey apartments. Charles took over the family business in 1985, expanding it into Kushner Companies, headquartered first in Florham Park, New Jersey, and later in New York City.

By the late 1990s, Kushner Companies had grown to more than 10,000 residential apartments, a homebuilding division, and commercial and industrial properties. In 1999, Kushner received the Ernst & Young New Jersey Entrepreneur of the Year award. He holds a bachelor’s degree and MBA from New York University and a JD from Hofstra University — though he was subsequently disbarred in three states following his conviction.

Kushner was for many years a major donor to the Democratic Party. He supported Governor James McGreevey’s campaigns in New Jersey and was appointed to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey board of commissioners. He later shifted his political and financial support toward Trump-affiliated causes and candidates.

After his release from prison in 2006, Kushner moved his business activities primarily to New York City. In early 2007, Kushner Companies purchased 666 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan for $1.8 billion — a transaction later associated with Jared Kushner’s financial difficulties. Kushner remained active in real estate development after his disbarment. As of his 2025 financial disclosure filed with ProPublica’s Trump Team Financial Disclosures project, Kushner remained managing member or president of dozens of real estate partnerships and entities.

Federal Criminal Conviction

Case

United States v. Charles Kushner U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey Presiding Judge: Hon. Jose L. Linares Prosecuting U.S. Attorney: Christopher J. Christie

Guilty Plea — August 18, 2004

On August 18, 2004, Kushner appeared before Judge Linares and pleaded guilty to 18 federal counts:

• 16 counts of assisting in the filing of false tax returns (26 U.S.C. § 7206(2)): Kushner admitted that, as Chairman of Kushner Companies, he assisted in filing partnership tax returns claiming over $1 million in charitable contributions as office expenses, causing losses to the IRS of between $200,000 and $325,000.
• 1 count of retaliating against a cooperating federal witness (18 U.S.C. § 1513): Kushner admitted that he devised a scheme to retaliate against his sister, Esther Schulder, who was cooperating with federal investigators against him. The scheme involved hiring a prostitute to seduce Esther’s husband, William Schulder, covertly filming the encounter, and mailing the videotape to Esther to intimidate her from continuing to cooperate. Kushner admitted to paying a private investigator $25,000 to arrange the seduction and personally recruiting the prostitute.
• 1 count of making false statements to the Federal Election Commission (18 U.S.C. § 1001): Kushner admitted to allocating campaign contributions to individuals who had not consented to having contributions made in their names, producing false FEC records.

Source: U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of New Jersey press release, August 18, 2004. Available at: https://www.justice.gov/archive/tax/usaopress/2004/txdv04kush0818_r.htm

FEC Fine — June 30, 2004

Prior to the criminal guilty plea, on June 30, 2004, the Federal Election Commission separately fined Kushner $508,900 for contributing to Democratic political campaigns through his partnerships without authorization.

Sentencing — March 4, 2005

On March 4, 2005, Judge Linares sentenced Kushner to 24 months in federal prison — the maximum sentence available under the plea agreement, and at the top of the applicable sentencing guidelines range (18–24 months). Judge Linares also imposed a fine.

U.S. Attorney Christie sought a sentence above the plea agreement maximum; the court imposed the plea agreement maximum.

Source: U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of New Jersey press release, March 4, 2005. Available at: https://www.justice.gov/archive/tax/usaopress/2005/txdv05kush0304_r.htm

Incarceration and Release

Kushner reported to the Federal Bureau of Prisons and served 14 months at Federal Prison Camp, Montgomery (Montgomery, Alabama), before being transferred to a halfway house in Newark, New Jersey, to complete his sentence. He was released on August 25, 2006.

As a convicted felon, Kushner was disbarred in New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.

Prosecutor’s Assessment

Chris Christie, who prosecuted the case as U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey and later served as Governor of New Jersey and chaired Trump’s first presidential transition, described the witness tampering scheme publicly:

“If a guy hires a prostitute to seduce his brother-in-law, and videotapes it, and then sends the videotape to his sister to attempt to intimidate her from testifying before a grand jury, do I really need any more justification than that? I mean, it’s one of the most loathsome, disgusting crimes that I prosecuted when I was US attorney.”

Source: CBS News; Times of Israel (quoting AP/Christie, December 2020).

Trump Pardon (December 23, 2020)

On December 23, 2020, during the final weeks of his first term, President Donald Trump granted Charles Kushner a full and unconditional pardon. The White House statement cited Kushner’s philanthropic activities since his 2006 release, including work with Saint Barnabas Medical Center and United Cerebral Palsy, and stated: “This record of reform and charity overshadows Mr. Kushner’s conviction and 2 year sentence for preparing false tax returns, witness retaliation, and making false statements to the Federal Election Commission.”

The pardon was granted without any formal DOJ clemency review process. It was announced alongside pardons for Paul Manafort, Roger Stone, and other Trump associates. Supporters cited by the White House included Brett Tolman (former U.S. Attorney for Utah), Matt Schlapp (American Conservative Union), and David Safavian (American Conservative Union).

Sources:

• White House Press Secretary Statement on Executive Grants of Clemency, December 23, 2020. American Presidency Project: https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/statement-the-press-secretary-regarding-executive-grants-clemency-2
• Washington Post, December 23, 2020: “Trump pardons Charles Kushner, Paul Manafort, Roger Stone.”
• NPR, December 23, 2020: “Trump Pardons Roger Stone, Paul Manafort And Charles Kushner.”

Role in Trump Administration

Nomination

On November 30, 2024, President-elect Trump announced his intention to nominate Charles Kushner as U.S. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the French Republic, with concurrent service as Ambassador to the Principality of Monaco. Trump described Kushner as a “tremendous business leader, philanthropist and dealmaker.” Kushner had no prior diplomatic or government service experience.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Hearing — May 1, 2025

Kushner testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on May 1, 2025 (Nominations hearing, SD-419). His written testimony is publicly available via the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. At the hearing, Committee Ranking Member Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) questioned Kushner extensively about his conviction. Kushner stated:

“I don’t sit here before you today and tell you I’m a perfect person. I am not a perfect person. I made a very, very, very serious mistake, and I paid a very heavy price for that mistake. I think that my past mistakes actually make me better with my judgment, better in my view of life, better in my values to really make me more qualified to do this job.”

He outlined his policy priorities as: fostering a more balanced trade relationship, pressing France on increased defense investment, and promoting historical education.

Sources: Senate Foreign Relations Committee, testimony transcript, May 1, 2025. New Jersey Globe, May 1, 2025.

Committee Vote — May 8, 2025

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee advanced Kushner’s nomination by a 12-0 vote, with only Republican members present.

Source: New Jersey Globe, May 8, 2025.

Senate Confirmation — May 19, 2025

The full Senate confirmed Kushner by a 51–45 vote (Senate Roll Call Vote 261, 119th Congress, 1st Session, PN24-4) on May 19, 2025.

• 42 Democrats voted no. 2 Independents voted no.
• 1 Democrat (Sen. Cory Booker, D-NJ) voted yes — Kushner’s home-state senator and a personal acquaintance of 25+ years.
• 1 Republican (Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-AK) voted no.
• 4 senators did not vote.