Trump appoints Massad Boulos, his daughter's father-in-law, as senior advisor for the Middle East

(Patria) - President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday appointed Massad Boulos, a Lebanese-American businessman who is the father-in-law of Trump's daughter Tiffany, as senior advisor for Arab and Middle Eastern affairs, AP reported.

Boulos organized the Trump campaign's efforts to engage the Arab-American community in Michigan, arranging dozens of meetings in areas with large Arab-American populations that were angry over Democratic President Joe Biden's support for Israeli offensives in Gaza and Lebanon.

Trump won the majority Arab-American city of Dearborn Heights on
his way to Michigan and other swing states.

"He is a longtime advocate for Republican and conservative values, a member of my campaign, and was instrumental in building massive new coalitions with the Arab-American community," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

Trump and Boulos said the Republican president-elect would bring peace to the Middle East, but neither publicly offered specific details about Trump's plans for the region.

Boulos previously sought office in Lebanon and has long-standing ties to political figures in the country.

Boulos helped exploit a rift within the Democratic base over support for the Israeli offensive in Gaza, where more than 44,000 people have been killed since the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023.

Trump won Michigan in 2016 by just over 10,000 votes, and Biden reclaimed the state for Democrats in 2020 by about 154,000 votes. Trump defeated Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris in Michigan in November with 49.7 percent of the vote.

"Massad is a dealmaker and an unwavering supporter of PEACE in the Middle East," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Trump, who has already placed family members and their relatives in key positions, signals he will run his second administration in the same way. On Saturday, he announced he intends to nominate real estate investor Charles Kushner, the father of Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, as ambassador to France.