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A Trump appointee focused on government purchasing, Federal Acquisition Service Commissioner Josh Gruenbaum, has been attending high-level negotiations related to Ukraine and Gaza for the Trump administration.
Gruenbaum — whose background is in private equity and investment banking — attended a Tuesday summit of the “coalition of the willing” in Paris focused on Ukrainian security as a White House advisor.
This is the latest meeting related to Ukraine in recent months attended by Gruenbaum, who doesn’t appear to have any background in foreign policy or national security. He was appointed last year to the top procurement job at the General Services Administration, which has since 1949 supported federal agencies by producing goods, handling real estate, and performing other services. The agency has no role in foreign policy.
Marianne Copenhaver, a GSA spokesperson, told Nextgov/FCW that “many officials serve in multiple roles.”
“Commissioner Gruenbaum is honored that the President has trusted him to support additional critical work that the administration is doing — a trust based on the commissioner’s track record of taking on challenging tasks and getting things done,” she said. The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
This week, Gruenbaum was part of a U.S. delegation that included U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff; Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law; U.S. Air Force Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, the top U.S. general in Europe; and Kushner’s father, Charles Kushner, the U.S. Ambassador to France and Monaco. Witkoff called Gruenbaum a “White House advisor” in a post on X. Gruenbaum lists both the White House and GSA as employers on his LinkedIn.
The meeting led to a U.S. commitment to support Ukraine alongside the coalition of mainly European nations if it’s attacked again by Russia. Gruenbaum appears beside the Kushners on a couch in an image and video released by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Gruenbaum previously attended a series of meetings with Ukrainian and European partners in Florida alongside Witkoff and Kushner in mid-December. He was also present during a discussion related to security guarantees last month via video call with Witkoff, Kushner, Grynkewich, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and retired Army general and Fox News analyst Jack Keane.
Ukraine is only the latest foreign-policy issue that Gruenbaum has worked on.
A former Federal Acquisition Service executive, who requested anonymity to speak freely, said the commissioner role does not have any overlap with foreign policy conversations and that it is unusual for someone in that position to be involved in such meetings.
Gruenbaum appears sitting in an armchair during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Witkoff and others to discuss Trump’s peace plan for Gaza in a November photo.
The Guardian reported last month that Gruenbaum is a senior advisor to the president’s Gaza taskforce, and that he’s worked with Department of Government Efficiency affiliate Adam Hoffman to develop plans for humanitarian aid and post-war reconstruction on the Gaza Strip.
Like Hoffman, Gruenbaum is also linked to DOGE. Elon Musk ally and former DOGE operational lead Steven Davis sought for Gruenbaum to help lead the organization following Musk’s departure.
The GSA appointee has also been involved with the Trump administration’s pledge to fight antisemitism in higher education, joining a task force on the issue alongside other lower-profile administration members. The task force has sought for higher education institutions to make changes to diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, as the Washington Post has reported.
Gruenbaum told the New Yorker last fall that he wanted to use government contracting with institutions of higher education to influence campuses, saying, “It is a privilege to do business with the federal government.” The administration has used freezing federal funding as a tactic.
Meanwhile, at GSA, the Federal Acquisition Service that Gruenbaum oversees lost over 300 contracting employees over the last year — losses that’ve caused challenges with various workloads as the agency looks to take on an even more centralized role in contracting across the government.
Contractors have had to wait up to five months to have requested contract modifications processed, according to a recent watchdog report on the agency. Nonetheless, GSA led major procurement consolidation reform efforts over the year, consolidating some $400 billion in contracts under the agency, striking numerous deals with tech companies to discount software to government customers and helping rewrite the Federal Acquisition Regulation.
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16 Comments
The image of Gruenbaum sitting beside the Kushners on a couch in a photo released by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky implies a level of familiarity and camaraderie that may not be typical for a procurement chief.
This could indicate a personal relationship between Gruenbaum and the Kushners that predates his appointment as Commissioner.
It’s unusual that Federal Acquisition Service Commissioner Josh Gruenbaum, with a background in private equity and investment banking, is attending high-level negotiations related to Ukraine and Gaza without any apparent experience in foreign policy or national security.
This lack of experience could potentially hinder his ability to make informed decisions in such critical meetings.
The presence of Charles Kushner, the U.S. Ambassador to France and Monaco, at the meeting alongside his son Jared Kushner and Gruenbaum, raises questions about the extent of family involvement in foreign policy decisions.
Given the General Services Administration’s role since 1949 in supporting federal agencies through procurement and real estate management, Gruenbaum’s foray into foreign policy seems to diverge significantly from the agency’s traditional mandate.
As a former Federal Acquisition Service executive noted, the commissioner role does not have any overlap with foreign policy conversations, making Gruenbaum’s involvement in such meetings unusual and potentially concerning.
The U.S. commitment to support Ukraine alongside the coalition of mainly European nations if it’s attacked again by Russia, resulting from the meeting Gruenbaum attended, has significant geopolitical implications.
This commitment could lead to increased tensions with Russia and necessitate a reevaluation of U.S. military presence in Europe.
The fact that Gruenbaum was part of a U.S. delegation that included U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law, to a summit on Ukrainian security, highlights the interconnectedness of his roles at the White House and GSA.
The fact that Gruenbaum lists both the White House and GSA as employers on his LinkedIn profile raises questions about potential conflicts of interest in his role as a White House advisor and Commissioner of the Federal Acquisition Service.
Gruenbaum’s appointment to the top procurement job at the General Services Administration last year, followed by his involvement in high-level international negotiations, suggests a significant expansion or reinterpretation of the Commissioner’s role under the current administration.
Gruenbaum’s work on Trump’s peace plan for Gaza, as reported by The Guardian, further expands his role beyond the typical responsibilities of a procurement chief and into sensitive international diplomacy.
Gruenbaum’s involvement in discussions related to security guarantees for Ukraine, including a video call with high-ranking officials like Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, underscores the breadth of his unexpected role in foreign policy.
Gruenbaum’s attendance at a series of meetings with Ukrainian and European partners in Florida alongside Witkoff and Kushner in mid-December suggests a deeper involvement in foreign policy issues than his role at GSA would typically require.
Gruenbaum’s track record of taking on challenging tasks, as mentioned by GSA spokesperson Marianne Copenhaver, does not necessarily prepare him for the complexities of international negotiations over Ukraine and Gaza.