Hasan Minhaj calls out Kushner at event over ties to Saudi crown prince

Comedian Hasan Minhaj called out White House senior adviser and President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner for his ties to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during an event the two attended on Tuesday.

Both Kushner and Minhaj were being honored at the Time 100 Gala for the magazine’s issue on the most influential people of 2019.

In a speech, with Kushner in the audience, Minhaj suggested the Trump adviser use his relationship with the powerful Saudi crown prince to get Loujain Al-Hathloul, also a Time 100 honoree, out of prison. Al-Hathloul was jailed for advocating for women’s rights in Saudi Arabia.

{mosads}“I know there’s a lot of very powerful people here, and it would be crazy if there was a high-ranking official in the White House that could WhatsApp MBS [Mohammed bin Salman] and say, ‘Hey maybe you could help that person get out of prison because they don’t deserve it,’ ” Minhaj said Tuesday, according to Time. “But hey, that person would have to be in the room. It’s just a good comedy premise.”

Minhaj’s reference to WhatsApp comes after reports that Kushner used the messaging application, along with a personal email account, to conduct official government business. Kushner also reportedly has a close relationship the crown prince.

Minhaj after his speech told Time he was serious about his request to have Kushner get involved in the possible release of Al-Hathloul.

“I was just hoping he could send a WhatsApp message,” he said. “[It could say] hey, this person has been fighting for civil liberties for all people. Maybe you should let them out of prison.”