Progressive holdouts withhold support for Jeffries speakership bid
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries drew a left-wing backlash this week for holding a private meeting with Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law and outside adviser, as Democrats head into midterm elections with growing expectations of retaking the House — and of Jeffries becoming the chamber’s first Black speaker.
Jeffries confirmed the meeting in a video posted to X, wearing a green New York Yankees hat and matching collared shirt. He said Kushner had requested the meeting and that the two discussed ways Democrats could find common ground with the White House on affordability. But, he warned, “no one is going to get a pass — we’re going to hold every single member of the Trump cartel accountable beginning on Day One.”
On CNN, Jeffries expanded on the rationale. Democrats “have a responsibility to solve problems. And sometimes that means meeting with people on the other side of the aisle to figure out what the opportunities will be,” he said.
Kushner and Jeffries also discussed affordable housing during the meeting, and Kushner encouraged Jeffries to meet with White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, according to people familiar with the meeting. Kushner and Jeffries previously worked together on criminal justice reform in 2018. The White House and Kushner’s spokesman declined to comment.
The meeting drew sharp criticism from the Democratic left. Journalist Mehdi Hasan, founder of the media company Zeteo, wrote on X: “The only meeting Hakeem Jeffries should be having with Jared Kushner is to tell him he’ll be subpoenaed by the House for a corruption investigation on day one of Democratic control of the House.”
Jeffries’s allies pushed back. Rep. Jared Huffman (D., Calif.) called the controversy “a big nothing burger that the Trump team is trying to use to create a distraction and a wedge between Hakeem and progressives because they know they’re going to lose.” Huffman added: “Anyone who knows Hakeem Jeffries is not worried that he is working some deal behind the scenes with Jared Kushner.”
Lauren Hitt, a former aide to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) who advises progressive candidates, said the frustration runs beyond the typical progressive-versus-moderate divide. “There’s this broad sense among Democratic Party voters that its leaders are playing by old rules,” Hitt said.
The primary season has brought Democratic candidates aligned with the Democratic Socialists of America into the nominee pool, creating potential rifts within the caucus over issues including Gaza and universal healthcare. Several DSA-linked primary victors have declined to endorse Jeffries for speaker: New York City candidates Darializa Avila-Chevalier and Claire Valdez, Adam Hamawy of New Jersey, Melat Kiros of Colorado, and Chris Rabb of Pennsylvania.
Rep. Rabb framed the question in terms of governing priorities. “More important than who controls the gavel is what they do with it when we’re back in the majority,” Rabb said. “And is that in alignment with the things that got us elected?”
A narrow Democratic majority would amplify the leverage of progressive holdouts; a larger majority would give Jeffries more room to maneuver. There are no obvious challengers to his leadership within the caucus. Jeffries maintains close ties to his leadership team, including Reps. Katherine Clark (D., Mass.) and Pete Aguilar (D., Calif.), and remains a longstanding member of the Congressional Black Caucus, a key backer of his potential speakership. First elected in 2012, he would be the nation’s first Black speaker if Democrats retake the House.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic socialist whose endorsements shaped the state’s June Democratic primary, gave Jeffries a public vote of confidence at a news conference, saying he continues to support Jeffries for the party leadership role.
The episode put House Republicans on the defensive. Speaker Mike Johnson (R., La.) told Fox News he had first learned of the meeting that morning. “I know Jared is a smart guy and he hedges bets, but I’m telling you what, you better not bet against the House Republicans,” Johnson said.
Former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel, a House leadership veteran who remains in touch with Jeffries, said the meeting reflected the Trump orbit’s preparation for divided government. “It shows the White House sees the future,” Emanuel said. “And it is coming at them 100 miles per hour.”
Jeffries has spent the August recess traveling to boost Democratic candidates. He held a July event in Pennsylvania for Bob Brooks, a firefighter and labor leader challenging Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R., Pa.), and has held fundraisers and events with Reps. Tim Kennedy and Joe Morelle of New York. He has raised money in Chicago, St. Louis, Los Angeles, and at his annual donor retreat in La Jolla, Calif. Two fundraisers are scheduled this weekend in the Hamptons, including an event at the home of philanthropist Alexander Soros and his wife, Huma Abedin, a Democratic strategist, according to people familiar with the plans.