Jon Stewart Is Thrown When Journalist Starts Interview With Jared Kushner’s Denial: ‘Am I in Trouble Now?’

Jon Stewart was briefly taken aback during Monday’s “The Daily Show” when his guest, Matthew Cole, kicked off their interview with a formal denial from Jared Kushner, who is the subject of the journalist’s new book, “Princes and Thieves.”“Oh, my God, did you bring questions for me?” Stewart quipped as the sit down conversation kicked off. “No, but I do have something out of fairness, before we begin, I want to read Mr. Kushner’s lawyer’s denial, part of it,” Cole said as the studio audience broke out into laughter. “No, [I’m] serious.” A baffled Stewart responded: “You want to read it before we start? Is this a bit or is this real?” Cole then assured Stewart and the crowd that this statement was “very real,” before taking a moment to read the lawyer’s comments aloud. “Mr. Kushner never accessed foreign accounts and always followed all rules and regulations, and only pursued goals that were in the best interest of the United States, as directed by the President of the United States,” Cole shared, noting it was a statement he received from Kushner’s camp. “So I just want to get that out of the way, because it’s important, no, it’s important to note that Kushner unequivocally and emphatically denies everything in this book,” he added. “I mean, everything.” Stewart then took a beat, staring intently at Cole before asking: “Well, am I in trouble now? What the f–k? What are you doing?” Cole informed Stewart that he was “good,” giving the late night host the greenlight to move forward with their interview. In the sit down, Stewart and Cole discussed the contents of “Princes and Thieves: Jared Kushner and Mohamed bin Zayed’s Secret Plot to Remake the Middle East,” which chronicles his five-year investigation into alleged secret financial agreements and arrangements between Kushner and the rulers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. Elsewhere in the interview, Stewart confessed that the book was “a frustrating read,” noting he believed it “on theory” before comparing it to religion. “I get the general, like, there might be something in the sky that’s bigger than all of us. But once you get down to, like, and he’s a carpenter– then I’m like, OK,” Stewart noted. “And I think that, for me, was part of the problem is when you get into some of the specifics, they raise so many questions that I began to question the entire narrative. And if I can question the specifics, it felt like it undercut the larger story.” Cole, who could not speak to specifics surrounding his fact-finding in order to protect his sources, said he felt “very confident” in what he put forward in “Princes and Thieves.” “This book, for me, started five years ago. I pulled a thread. I followed that thread for five years,” he said. “Just because the book doesn’t have every answer to every question or it prompts more questions, to me, that’s the point. That’s the purpose. We have to understand … what the hell happened.” He added: “What I’m bringing is the tip of the iceberg in terms of Trump’s corruption, OK? The Trump administration’s corruption that started in the first administration, OK? And I don’t know how big it is beneath the surface, but I know it’s a lot bigger than the tip. And so I’m pushing it there.” Watch Cole’s full “Daily Show” interview above. A representative for Kushner did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.