Trump gives Kelley Paul’s push for criminal justice reform a major boost
BY LESLEY CLARK
November 14, 2018
For Kelley Paul, improving the nation’s criminal justice system is a family affair.
Her husband, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, has been a leading Republican champion of efforts to curb mandatory sentencing. His father, former Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, has been pushing the cause for decades.
Now Kelley Paul has become a major advocate, meeting with senators and anyone who will listen in hopes of passing legislation to expand treatment opportunities for federal prisoners.
On Wednesday morning, as supporters hoped for an endorsement from President Donald Trump, she appeared on one of his favorite shows, “Fox & Friends,” to make her pitch.
“This has support on both sides of the aisle,” Paul said. “President Trump has been a leader on this, Ivanka and Jared Kushner as well. I think it’s just incredible that we may finally take a leap forward.”
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“Kelley was our secret weapon, we brought her in as the closer,” said Holly Harris, executive director of the Justice Action Network, a leading advocacy group. “She’s passionate and powerful and she can get some of the meetings that it’s difficult for the average advocate to land.”
Trump had earlier taken notice of Paul. At a rally in Lexington last month for Rep. Andy Barr, R-Kentucky, the president urged more television appearances for Kelley Paul.
“She has become the biggest star in the family,” Trump said.
In an interview earlier this fall, Paul said her husband and father-in-law’s advocacy “opened my eyes to the extent of how bad our system is broken and how people are suffering through that.”
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