Trump turns to father-in-law to help flip key voting group

Massad Boulous - the Lebanese-born father of Tiffany Trump 's husband - says he's all in to convince Arab Americans to vote for his in-law Donald in the 2024 election. DailyMail.com previously reported that Tiffany's husband Michael Boulos and his billionaire Lebanese father are helping court their community, who could potentially swing states like Michigan for Trump.

Now, Massad (pictured right) - who moved to Texas as a teenager, speaks Arabic, English and French and got involved in politics when he lived in Nigeria - confirms he is set to join the Trump family business to help retake the White House. Boulous told DailyMail.com in 2021 that Trump was the 'greatest president in recent times' and believes he and not Joe Biden can benefit the Arab American community by bringing peace to the Middle East.

'Obviously the No. 1 point that is of high priority within the Arab American community is the current war in the Middle East,' Boulos said. 'And the question is, who can bring peace and who is bringing war? And they know the answer to that.' Some Trump allies think they can capitalize on dissension within Biden's Democratic base over his support for the Israeli offensive in Gaza, where more than 37,000 people have died since Hamas' Oct. 7, according to health officials in the Hamas-run territory who do not give the breakdown of civilians and fighters. Biden faced a significant protest vote during the Michigan primary February in areas with high numbers of Arab Americans, who are an important Democratic bloc.

Boulos assisted with the 2020 campaign, but his role has significantly expanded since his son married Tiffany Trump in 2022, especially as Arab American dissatisfaction with Biden presented what Trump allies think is a larger political opportunity. 'One less vote for Biden is a vote for Trump,' said Bishara Bahbah, chairman of the group Arab Americans for Trump. Boulos maintains a 'very close working relationship' with the group, Bahbah said.

The group, which says it is independent of the Trump campaign, has established operations in Michigan and Arizona, states identified as priority areas by 'people close to Trump,' Bahbah said. A May meeting held in Troy, Michigan, included Massad and Michael Boulos as well as Richard Grenell, who was Trump´s ambassador to Germany and is a key foreign policy adviser to the former president. Approximately 40 Arab American activists from across the country attended. While Arab Americans for Trump was involved in the event, Boulos said that it had primarily been initiated by Grenell. The gathering received mixed feedback, with some attendees saying it lacked substance and failed to address their concerns regarding Trump. 'Grenell didn´t say what they would do, but he kept reminding us that when Trump was president, there was no war whatsoever and that he launched the biggest peace effort in the Middle East.

But most Arabs and Muslims don´t consider the Abraham Accords a peace agreement,' said Khaled Saffuri, an Arab American political activist who was in attendance. Just over a week later, Boulos returned for another round of engagements. This time, he had several meetings with nearly 50 members of the Arab American community, alongside one-on-one sessions with individuals identified as 'high-target' leaders by Mike Hacham, the coordinator for Arab Americans for Trump in Michigan. Boulos said his efforts so far have been 'more of a personal effort to reconnect with friends.'

He said he typically begins meetings by speaking for close to 20 minutes, laying out the records of the Biden and Trump presidencies. He then opens the floor for any questions. In interviews, Boulos said that Trump 'respects and admires' the Arab American community. He denied the existence of a 'Muslim ban,' which is how many Trump opponents refer to his ban on immigrants from several majority-Muslim countries. Boulos argued it was actually 'extreme vetting from certain parts of the world.' The key messages arising from these meetings, Boulos said, are communicated to Trump. Boulos highlighted a recent social media post from Trump that promised to bring 'peace in the Middle East' if reelected, as evidence. He asserted that the timing of the post 'wasn´t a coincidence' but rather a response to 'listening to the community´s concerns.'

Trump´s statement, posted on his social media platform, Truth Social, on June 4, did not go far enough for multiple community leaders who met with Boulos. In a statement, Trump campaign spokesperson Brian Hughes said the campaign is 'grateful that supporters of President Trump are working to communicate with this community.' 'We share the belief that Biden´s failed Middle East policies have brought death, chaos and war to the region. That failure led tens of thousands of Democrats to vote `uncommitted´ in Michigan´s Presidential primary. 'The Trump campaign has and will continue to communicate to those voters and remind them that President Trump´s policies in the Middle East brought that region historic levels of peace and stability,' Hughes said.

Ammar Moussa, a spokesperson for the Biden campaign, criticized Trump allies' outreach, saying in a statement that Trump 'is the biggest threat to the Muslim and Arab community.' 'He and his allies believe we don't belong in this country and Trump is openly speaking about allowing Israel to bomb Gaza without regard,' said Moussa, who is Arab American. 'Trump and his campaign are racists and Islamophobes. Period. President Biden, on the other hand, is working tirelessly towards a just and lasting peace.' Until the November election, Boulos said he will continue to divide his time between managing his company and meeting with the Arab American community. He stressed that he is solely driven by being a 'concerned citizen and a Republican.' He has not contemplated a role in Trump's administration if the Republican were to win. 'I honestly don´t have any thoughts about that at this time. I didn´t give this any thought whatsoever, but definitely I do not aspire for anything,' he said.

The Boulos family is Lebanese and but Michael was born in Houston and grew up in Lagos, Nigeria , where his father has several business interests. Massad Boulos was involved in politics in Nigeria. He ran for parliamentary elections in 2018 before withdrawing his nomination. The family is now focused on their business interests in the African nation. Boulos Enterprises and SCOA Nigeria is a multi-billion-dollar conglomerate that trades in vehicles, equipment, retail and construction. But they are enthusastic supporters of Donald Trump. After Michael and Tiffany got engaged in 2021, Massad Boulous told DailyMail.com that Trump is 'the best president in recent US history; and the one with the biggest achievements by far.'

Boulos, along with wife Tiffany, is serving as a delegate from Florida to the Republican National Committee meeting this July. Tiffany increased her involvement with the campaign in the last election cycle, making a speech during the 2020 convention. The couple lives in Miami, not far from Tiffany's half-siblings Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner and Don Jr. and his fiance Kimberly Guilfoyle. Biden has been losing support among Arab-American voters due to his support for Israel in the Middle East war. The voting bloc is essential in key battleground states like Michigan. A New York Times/Siena College poll last month showed Trump leading Biden 57%-25% among Arab and Muslim voters in five battleground states. It is a dramatic flip from four years ago when Biden won the same group 56%-35%.

Biden won Michigan's Democratic presidential primary in February but more than 100,000 Michigan Democratic primary voters cast ballots for 'uncommitted,' which was enough to pick up two delegates. Many of those disenfranchised voters were Arab-Americans. Michael Boulos and Tiffany began dating in 2018. They got engaged in January 2021 after he proposed in the Rose Garden of the White House with a 13-carat diamond worth $1.2 million. They married on November 12, 2022, at Mar-a-Lago in front of 250 guests. The couple met while on vacation in Mykonos in 2018, when Tiffany Trump was studying law at Georgetown Law and Boulos was studying project management at City, University of London.

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