Here comes that Jared Kushner indictment
It took him to nearly the end of 2017, but Robert Mueller has finally gotten his man. His plea deal with Micheal Flynn has given him the testimony and evidence he needs to make a quick and forceful move against Jared Kushner, in an attempt at flipping Kushner against Donald Trump. There is no longer any question that Mueller will indict Kushner. So just how soon can we expect it?
Let’s be clear: Mueller could have indicted Kushner months ago for making false statements on his White House security clearance form. The form itself makes clear that any such false statements are a felony. This doesn’t mean a jury would find Kushner guilty, as he’ll claim it was an honest error or that he hadn’t yet completed the forms. Getting an indictment is easy because it requires minimal evidence. Getting a conviction requires irrefutable evidence. So Mueller has been waiting to indict Kushner until he was able to make a more comprehensive case. Now that he has Flynn in hand, he has that.
It’s possible Mueller already has a grand jury going against Kushner, and he’s plugging Flynn’s testimony and evidence into the mix as we speak, and the indictment is imminent. It’s also possible that Mueller won’t even wait for an indictment and will simply arrest Kushner the minute he thinks he’s gotten to the bottom of Flynn’s newly provided evidence. For unknown reasons, Mueller arrested and charged George Papadopoulos this summer (presumably based on probable cause) without having an indictment in place at the time, so there is every reason to believe he might do it again with Kushner.
But keep in mind that while there might be something satisfying about seeing Jared Kushner hauled out of his home in handcuffs, that is not Robert Mueller’s goal. He wants to pressure Kushner into cutting a deal. We just saw Flynn cut a deal without being arrested first (he technically surrendered himself into custody as part of the deal), because he knew it was coming, and he didn’t want to face trial. Will Kushner cut a deal before Mueller decides to indict him? That’s anyone’s guess. But with Flynn in hand, we all know that the Kushner indictment (or filing of criminal charges) is coming very soon.
