(CNN) - Prominent US Democratic lawmaker Robert Garcia is seeking information about the financial investments of Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's son-in-law and peace envoy, following an investigation conducted by CNN last week, which revealed that the private equity firm owned by Kushner is the largest shareholder in an Israeli company that supports businesses involved in Israeli military campaigns.
Garcia, the most prominent member of the Democratic Party on the House Oversight Committee, sent a letter, on Monday, to Kushner's investment company, Affinity Partners, in which he stated that the Democrats on the committee are "investigating the unprecedented and dangerous ways in which President Trump and his family have made direct profits thanks to their rise to power."
“I request detailed information about your business dealings in the Middle East to understand whether your huge financial gains have been achieved at the expense of the safety and security of Americans,” the California representative wrote.
This letter is an additional indication of the willingness of Democrats in the House of Representatives to investigate the business dealings of members of the Trump family, whether abroad or within the United States, if they regain the majority during the midterm elections scheduled for this fall.
On the other hand, a lawyer representing Kushner downplayed Garcia's criticism and sought to shed light on the investments the representative himself owns that were mentioned in the CNN report regarding Kushner. They are Phoenix Financial - an Israeli financial services company in which Affinity Partners is the largest investor - and Elbit Systems, Israel's largest arms manufacturer.
The lawyer said in a statement to CNN: “Representative Garcia’s speech is a stark example of irony: a member of Congress holds a private citizen accountable for owning a share in a stock in which the member himself also owns a share.”
He added, "Jared has no role in making decisions about what Phoenix buys or sells, but if that doesn't matter to Rep. Garcia, he should start investigating himself first."
Garcia's most recent disclosure forms indicate that his pension plans are administered through the California Public Employees Retirement System and the California State Teachers Retirement System.
Both plans hold shares in Phoenix Financials or Elbit Systems.
For his part, a spokesman for Garcia said that Kushner's lawyer was trying to "distract attention" from his client's behavior, adding that the congressman "does not trade stocks, and he - like millions of other public employees covered by the retirement plan - has no control over the fund and cannot withdraw from it."
Sara Guerrero, a spokeswoman for Garcia, said Kushner "is making millions with no accountability while traveling around the Middle East on behalf of his father-in-law."
“The apparent conflict of interest between Affinity Partners’ investments and your business in the Middle East — and in particular the potential for corrupt deals in light of these conflicts of interest — calls for congressional oversight and accountability,” Garcia’s letter said.
A CNN investigation raised questions about a potential conflict of interest between Kushner's volunteer role as a Middle East peace envoy and his company's financial investments.
Kushner's lawyer did not address his client's role as a negotiator on behalf of the Trump administration.
As part of its review of Kushner's financial holdings, CNN used Israeli financial transparency laws to track investments made by Phoenix, a Tel Aviv-based company in which Kushner's Affinity Partners doubled its stake last year, just before Trump returned to the Oval Office.
CNN's investigation specifically excluded Phoenix's investments made through retirement accounts, focusing instead on the company's holdings in the insurance sector.
Those records - which include only a portion of Phoenix's holdings - show that the company has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in Elbit Systems.
CNN also found that "Phoenix" owns shares in at least 8 other companies that provide equipment to the Israeli army, ranging from drones, warships, and demolition vehicles.
All nine companies identified by CNN saw their stock value rise last year, with many reporting that the war in Gaza led to increased demand for their products and services.
Affinity does not have a direct stake in the nine companies identified by CNN, but it reaps profits when Phoenix makes financial gains.
Kushner described Phoenix as Affinity's "best investment" in September 2025.
CNN found no indication that Kushner's actions as a diplomat directly affected the investments reviewed.
Kushner's lawyer told CNN that his client "never participated in or directed Phoenix's decisions" about where to invest.
One day after the CNN report, Kushner published a rare response on the “X” platform (formerly Twitter), describing the network’s report as “extremely misleading,” and did not refer in his post to any “inaccurate” information contained in the report.
“Let the misleading reports distract me from the work President Trump has assigned me to do: to help end wars, bring people together, and pursue peace,” Kushner wrote.
Garcia pointed to Kushner's social media post, writing: "Although you deny any inappropriate behavior, the fact remains that you have been given a position of enormous power and responsibility, exempt from financial disclosure requirements and external oversight."
In addition to the CNN report, the New York Times published a report detailing other instances of “overlap” between Kushner’s voluntary diplomatic role and his business actions regarding the war in Ukraine.
The newspaper reported that American talks with Russia to end that war have expanded to include a multi-billion-dollar deal to sell oil assets belonging to one of the largest Russian energy companies to a group of investors with ties to both Steve Witkoff and Kushner - the two main negotiators for the Trump administration.
A spokeswoman for Witkoff told the newspaper that he “does not have any conflict of interest or financial interest in this matter,” noting that his work with the US administration “is done at his own expense.”
Kushner's lawyer did not respond to CNN's inquiry regarding these reports.
Garcia and other Democrats have long demanded that the White House and Trump family provide answers about concerns about “apparent influence trading and quid pro quo deals,” and whether foreign money is being used “to buy access to the president and influence U.S. policy.”
In March, Garcia and Senator Ron Wyden requested specific information from the White House about Affinity Partners' fundraising efforts in the Middle East - where Kushner had received a $2 billion investment for his company from the Saudi sovereign wealth fund in 2021 - in light of Kushner's government work.
Neither Kushner nor Affinity Partners responded to the former congressman's request.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee is the chamber's main investigative committee, but requests from lawmakers from the minority party on the committee are voluntary and can be ignored without legal consequences; Official subpoenas cannot be issued except with the approval of the Chairman of the Committee or through a vote of its members.
If the balance of power changes as a result of the midterm elections in November, Democrats will be able to open a formal investigation.
After Republicans won a majority of House seats in 2023, the Oversight Committee, the Judiciary Committee, and the Ways and Means Committee opened similar investigations into the business dealings abroad of Hunter Biden, the son of the former president, who claimed that he was making financial gains by benefiting from his father’s presidency.
