Bannon vs Kushner

I thought maybe the Trump administration would rely less on Jews to run the country, but the Jews seem to be taking over.  That may not be bad, but it’s not what I expected.  Trump was going to work with Russia more and with American Jews less.  The reverse is happening.  

It looked like all the establishment Jews supported Hillary during the election, from George Soros on down.  Even many Republican Jews, like William Kristol, could not stomach Trump.  Trump is supposed to be a Presbyterian, a child of Protestant parents.  While he is clearly not very religious, to the extent that he espouses religious beliefs, they appear to be based on Protestant thinking.  On the other hand, Trump lived in New York City and worked in real estate; there is almost nothing more Jewish than that, other than working as a financier on Wall Street.

His son-in-law Jared Kushner is, in fact, the embodiment of the New York Jewish real estate tycoon, taking over the real estate empire created by his father, Charles, who was sent to prison by Chris Christie for political corruption.  Kushner’s paternal grandparents were Holocaust survivors who came to the US from Belarus in 1949.  For me that raises the question of whether Jared has a Jewish tribal hatred of Russian Slavs that seems to afflict so many Jews who lived under oppression in the old Soviet empire.  Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, is a religious Jew, having converted to marry Jared, but she is not an ethnic Jew with those inherited tribal prejudices.  

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin may be the only Jewish members of Trump’s cabinet, but many of this other advisers are, such as Gary Cohn, Carl Icahn, and some of their Wall Street associates.  Also Jewish are Ambassador to Israel David Friedman and policy adviser Steven Miller.  Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross does not appear to be Jewish, but he worked for the Rothschild family for more than twenty years before going out on his own.  

On the other side, Vice President Mike Pence says he is an evangelical Christian, but he doesn’t appear to belong to a particular church.  Reince Priebus is Greek Orthodox.  Wikipedia says Steve Bannon comes from an Irish Catholic family.  Regarding Bannon, the Religious News Service says that he sees a connection between the alt-right positions he espoused and Jewish Zionism.  I’m guessing the military appointees to Trump’s cabinet are  not Jewish -- Mattis, Kelly and McMaster.  One web site simply says McMaster is Christian; Mattis’ religious views seem to be a mystery.  Tillerson is a member of a Congregational church.  Scott Pruitt is a Baptist.  Rick Perry is an evangelical Christian.  Ben Carson is a Seventh Day Adventist.  Jeff Sessions is a Methodist.  Mike Pompeo is a Presbyterian.  The Religion News Service says Betsy DeVos has deep roots in the Christian Reformed denomination.  Nikki Haley was born into an Indian Sikh family but now attends her husband’s Methodist church.  Tom Price is a Presbyterian.  

So, it looks like whether Bannon stays or goes, Trump will be surrounded by more Christians than Jews, although it looks like Jared Kushner is the most influential adviser on many issues.  On foreign policy, Mattis, Tillerson and McMaster are there with Kushner.  On domestic issues there are a number of Christians to put in their two cents worth, depending on what the issue is.  Perhaps I am overly worried about the Jewish influence around Trump.