President Trump: Kushner is doing a 'great job' for the country

President Donald Trump said he has "total confidence" in Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and top White House adviser. (AP)

President Donald Trump said he thinks Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and top White House adviser, is doing a “great job” for the United States.

In a statement provided to The New York Times on Sunday, the president said “Jared is doing a great job for the country.”

“I have total confidence in him,” Trump continued. “He is respected by virtually everyone and is working on programs that will save our country billions of dollars. In addition to that, and perhaps more importantly, he is a very good person.”

JARED KUSHNER WANTED SECRET COMMUNICATIONS CHANNEL WITH RUSSIA, NEW REPORT ALLEGES

Trump’s comments follow recent reports that Kushner, who is married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka, is under FBI scrutiny as part of a probe into collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. Kushner may possess substantial information relevant to the investigation, officials told NBC News.

A recent report from The Washington Post claimed that Kushner attempted to coordinate a secure, private line of communication with Russia. During a December 2016 meeting with Russian ambassador Sergei Kislyak, Kushner allegedly proposed the use of Russian diplomatic facilities as a way to shield pre-inauguration discussions with Kislyak from monitoring, according to The Post.

But on Monday, a source told Fox News that it was the Russians, not Kushner, who wanted to set up the communication line. According to the source close to Kushner, the concept of a permanent back channel was never discussed. Instead, only a one-off for a call about Syria was raised in the conversation.

Kushner is eager to talk to Congress about the meeting and any others of interest, the source told Fox News.