Trump's Ex-Pal Drops Bomb About Ivanka & Jared Kushner's Relationship

Former Donald Trump ally and confidante, Chris Christie, has revealed a strange thing about Ivanka Trump's marriage to Jared Kushner that was previously unknown to the public. Appearing on C-Span on April 6, Christie referenced when he was the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey and was instrumental in prosecuting Jared's father, Charles Kushner, in a major 2004 tax fraud case. Christie recalled that when Ivanka and Jared's relationship started to flourish, Trump reacted in a surprising way. 

"It became clear to Donald Trump that they were going to get married," Christie said on C-Span. "And he has said this publicly, that he would've rather had her marry Tom Brady," the one-time governor added. According to Christie, Trump staunchly disapproved of seeing Ivanka tie the knot with Jared. "He was not thrilled ... he asked me to go out to dinner, and he said, 'Do you have anything more on the family, so I can break this up?'" The exact timeline of that alleged conversation is unknown, but Ivanka and Jared had their wedding in October 2009.

Christie: It became clear to Trump that Jared and Ivanka would get married. He was not thrilled about this. I was still the prosecutor. He asked me to go out to dinner and said, do you have anything more on the family, so I can break this up? pic.twitter.com/nRz6VIFeoZ

— Acyn (@Acyn) April 6, 2026

Claims that "The Apprentice" star wanted to use political influence to break up his daughter's marriage should be taken with a grain of salt, since, despite being pals for years, Christie now has a longstanding feud with Trump. The breakdown in their friendship seems to date back to Christie's decision not to support the claims that Joe Biden fraudulently won the 2020 presidential election. Since then, the lawyer-turned-politician has denounced his Trump allegiance. "Turns out I was wrong. I couldn't make him a better candidate and I couldn't make him a better president, and he disappointed me," Christie said on CNN's "The Lead" in June 2023. Besides Christie's claims, there have actually been other signs that Trump caused friction in Ivanka's marriage.

Amid rumors that her marriage to Jared Kushner was on the rocks in January 2023, Ivanka Trump was photographed hanging out with a group of girlfriends in Miami, sans wedding ring. According to Radar Online at the time, this was newsworthy because the reported tension in her marriage stemmed from issues with Donald Trump. Kushner apparently gave Ivanka a choice between marriage and the campaign trail, leading to tension at home and the president's daughter famously distancing herself from him and politics.

As chatter about relationship issues between the couple continued, Nicki Swift spoke to a matchmaker who pointed out red flags in Ivanka and Kushner's marriage. "When it comes to red flags in Ivanka and Jared's relationship, frankly, I am surprised they are still together," matchmaker Susan Trombetti told us in December 2024. Similar to reports from other outlets, Trombetti believed that Ivanka's father was the main source of marital consternation. "Let's face it, Donald Trump must be all they lived and breathed," the matchmaker told us, adding that it must have taken a toll on their marriage to get caught up in his presidency and legal drama. "Being a Daddy's girl can create conflict ... That's a lot for Jared," the matchmaker said.

Taking all that into account, it should come as no surprise that Ivanka and her beau relocated to Miami to distance themselves from politics and Trump himself. "They weathered a lot over the past eight years, the kind of stuff that would test anyone's relationship, but they've somehow come out stronger," a source told People about the married couple in October 2023. That's despite President Trump's best efforts.