I came across the first episode of Axios Season 2 on HBO and was blown away by the ability and courage to ask tough questions by Jonathan Swan.
Jonathan covered various controversial and sensitive topics, asking questions on Jared’s alleged conflict of interest in using his position in the government to further business interest, Jared’s close relationship with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Jared’s opinion on Palestine – Israel, whether Jared thinks Trump is a racist, whether he discussed with Trump on his security clearance and so on. Jonathan wasn’t afraid to challenge Jared’s answers on the spot and to follow with clarifying and dissecting questions.
Some of the questions asked are (edited a bit for publishing purpose)
- You are a son-in-law, a husband (to his daughter), a senior advisor, does it make it harder to tell him the truth? Where do you stand on abortion?
- Do you believe that the Jewish people have a God given right to The West Bank?
- Do you believe the Palestinian government is capable of governing themselves without the Israeli interference?
- You are talking about what Palestinian people want, but how do you frankly know what they want?
- The Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, what do you see in this guy personally? How many conversations have you had with MBS about the murder of Jamal Khashoggi? Will you join Khashoggi family in calling for the release of his body?
- Why didn’t you pick up the phone and call the FBI about the email from Roger Stone about the meeting with Russia?
- Has Trump ever said anything racist? Was Birtherism racist?
Not only is this a refreshing air breathed into journalism, but the interview is one of the rare looks into the mind of one of the top advisors in the government, Jared Kushner, who doesn’t do many interviews. Very well done by HBO and Axios.
Minh Quang Duong 