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An Obama Speechwriter Wore A Jared Kushner Costume & It Includes Handcuffs

by Seth Millstein
EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP/Getty Images

In light of reports that special counsel Robert Mueller has filed the first charges in the Trump-Russia investigation, one of President Obama's former speechwriters dressed as Jared Kushner in handcuffs for Halloween. Jon Favreau, who now co-hosts a political podcast, posted an image of his costume on Saturday, which included khakis, sunglasses and — in a detail inspired by real-life events — a flak jacket marked "Kushner" on top of a blazer. Favreau's wife, Emily, dressed as Ivanka Trump, and the two handcuffed themselves to one another for the costume.

"Early case of the Mondays?," Favreau wrote, referring to reports that Mueller's indictment could possibly result in an arrest on Monday.

It's still unknown who the subject of Mueller's indictment is. CNN reported on Saturday that a grand jury had approved the first indictments in the investigation, and that whoever is named in that indictments could be taken into custody as soon as Monday. It's possible that Kushner, President Trump's son-in-law and top advisor, is a target of those indictments — but it's just as possible that he isn't.

Favreau was Obama's chief speechwriter ever since Obama was a senator, and he stayed on that job during the 44th president's first term as president. He left the White House in 2013, became a columnist for the Daily Beast and ultimately started a political podcast, Keepin' It 1600, with several other alumni of the Obama administration. That podcast was renamed Pod Save America after the election, and not surprisingly, Trump has been a frequent target of its criticisms.

"If Hillary [Clinton] had won, I think we would have kept doing the podcast as a part-time job," Favreau told the Hollywood Reporter in January. "When Trump won, we felt the other jobs we had were no longer sufficient. We needed to get back in the game. There's a lot at stake right now and, certainly with Trump in office, there's a lot in danger."

In addition to Pod Saves America, Favreau also runs Crooked Media, a progressive media company and advocacy group that he and one of his co-hosts, former NSC Spokesman Tommy Vietor, founded after the election to promote progressive causes.

Very little about Mueller's investigation is known, as he and his team have been extremely tight-lipped ever since Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein appointed him to oversee the Russia probe in May. Reportedly, Mueller has been looking at possible collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government during the 2016 election and possible obstruction of justice by Trump; it's also been reported that Mueller is investigating financial transactions by Trump and his associates. Trump and the White House strenuously deny having colluded with the Russian government.

While it's anyone's guess who's named in Mueller's indictment, most speculation has centered on a small handful of people: former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort, former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, Trump's son Don Jr., former Trump advisor Carter Page, longtime Trump associate Roger Stone and Kushner.

The New York Times reported in May that Kushner attempted to establish a secret back channel with the Russian government during the campaign; although that back channel was reportedly never establish, the Washington Post reported months later that Mueller was looking at Kushner's communications with Russians, including Sergey Kislyak, as well as his financial transactions. Kushner was also present during a July 2016 meeting between Don Jr. and Natalia Veselnitskaya, a Kremlin-linked Russian attorney who had reportedly promised to give the Trump campaign dirt on Hillary Clinton.

So, will Favreau's Kushner costume be remembered merely as a silly joke, or will it wind up being prophetic? We might just find out on Monday.