Former Obama adviser celebrates new Trump appointment

It is not often you will see a Democrat celebrate something done by Donald Trump, but that happened recently.

Former Obama adviser Van Jones applauded Trump naming Alice Marie Johnson as his pardon czar.

Trump Pardons Johnson

During Trump’s first administration, he opened his door to Kim Kardashian, who, along with her beauty and clothing empire, is a justice warrior.

Kardashian brought the case of Johnson to Trump, asking him to look at the case and pardon her for her 1997 conviction for money laundering and drug conspiracy.

Johnson and 15 others had been arrested, with 10 of those people testifying against Johnson, but she had maintained that she was only a go-between, and had never dealt drugs to anyone.

After Trump agreed to issue her pardon, she stated, “I am thankful for the support of my family and all those who have worked tirelessly to bring about this moment, and I am committed to making a meaningful difference in the lives of those seeking a fresh start.”

Trump Second Term Pardons

Donald Trump started off his second term with a flurry of pardons, the most notable of these being the January 6 defendants.

I have been adamant about this, saying I could really care less about the 1,300 or so that were aimlessly walking around the Capitol, but I will never support the pardon of the violent offenders who attacked police that day. To me, it was a disgrace they were pardoned or had their sentences commuted.

Two of the other pardons that Trump issued I also do not agree with. Trump pardoned Robert Ulbricht as a promise to the crypto world. Ulbricht ran a dark website that was being used for money laundering and narcotics sales, just to name a few.

He also pardoned Rod Blagojevich after having previously commuted his sentence, who had been convicted of wire fraud, extortion, making false statements, conspiracy to corruptly solicit funds, and corrupt solicitation of funds. He was a corrupt politician that Trump let off the hook, and I will never support that.

A Pardon Czar

After issuing all those pardons, Trump has now appointed Johnson as his pardon czar, which former Obama adviser Van Jones loved.

Jones stated, "He put Miss Alice Johnson — the formerly incarcerated Black woman who he freed while working with Kim Kardashian — he just put her in charge of pardons. That’s huge.

"Somebody who has actually been incarcerated, been in the federal system, understands how the Department of Justice screws over people who should be coming home — some people who shouldn’t come home — but a lot of people that should come home, and they get screwed by the pardon office. She’s gonna fix that."

It’s a great PR move by Trump, and while I have zero problem with someone who was wrongly convicted commuted or pardoned, I don’t want to see commutations or pardons of sentences simply because they have been in jail for a certain period of time. I am not talking about someone that got busted with a $10 bag of weed. Pardon them all you want, but hardened drug dealers and other criminals, they need to stay behind bars. So I am really curious to see what Johnson’s first round of recommendations will be.