Kim Kardashian tells Kamala Harris she’s ‘here to help’ as they discuss criminal justice reform at White House
The reality TV star, whose father was OJ Simpson attorney Robert Kardashian, has become an advocate for criminal justice reform in recent years
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Your support makes all the difference.Reality television star Kim Kardashian told Kamala Harris she was “here to help” as she returned to the White House for the first time since meeting with Donald Trump.
Ms Kardashian, a criminal reform advocate, thanked the vice president for her “deep commitment to second chances” as she joined her for a roundtable event with four people just pardoned by Joe Biden.
The entrepreneur, the daughter of late OJ Simpson attorney Robert Kardashian, was a frequent guest during the Trump administration.
She was also instrumental in convincing reluctant senators to support the First Step Act, a bipartisan sentencing reform bill, and advocated for pardons for several non-violent offenders who received grants of clemency from Mr Trump.
Speaking in the Cabinet Room, she said it was in that very room that she attended a Trump-era meeting on criminal justice reform that had “really inspired” her to “take a journey of really helping to figure out how I can be helpful”.
Addressing several recipients of recent pardons in the room, she said she wanted to hear “the success stories from individuals like yourself”.
“I'm so honoured to be here to continue this fight and to learn more every day, every visit every administration, I'm just here to help and to spread the word,” she said.
Ms Harris, a former prosecutor who served as the attorney general in Ms Kardashian’s home state of California before she was elected to the Senate in 2017, called the reality star turned criminal justice reform crusader “a wonderful advocate.”
She also noted that during the Biden administration, she and President Joe Biden have worked to “remove obstacles” keeping people with criminal convictions from having success after completing their sentences and returning to society, including by a blanket pardon Mr Biden issued for all offenders convicted of simple marijuana possession in federal courts.
The vice president also announced that the administration is changing eligibility criteria for small business loans by removing restrictions which prevented people with certain criminal histories from qualifying.
“Reducing and eliminating that restriction is going to mean a lot in terms of second chances and the opportunity for people to excel,” she said.
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