President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner is heading up a new effort on job training and mentoring in federal prisons – padding a portfolio that already includes China and Middle East peace.
Kushner oversaw a meeting at the White House on the issue Thursday, although the White House didn’t send out a notification in advance.
Kushner told the Washington Post in an interview advancing the meeting: ‘There is a lot of agreement from the left and the center and the right that once a person has committed a crime we should make sure we give them the best opportunities to try to live a productive life after serving their time,” Kushner said.
‘We’re not looking to train better criminals.’
White House Senior Adviser Jared Kushner listens as President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak in the Cabinet Room of the White House, Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2017, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Senate Judiciary Committee ranking Democrat Diane Feinstein hadn’t heard of the effort, although two senators, John Coryn of Texas and Sheldon Whitehouse were expected to be there.
‘He’s got a big portfolio, though,’ she quipped, when asked by DailyMail.com about it.
Kushner oversees an office of American innovation meant to spur jobs.
The idea is not solicit ideas that require new federal dollars – even as the Trump administration has taken steps expected to boost the federal inmate population.
‘We’re not at a place where we are prescribing solutions. We’re bringing people together and generating ideas. If prisoner reentry programs are successfully executed, it’s usually a good investment,’ said Kushner.
Kushner is heading up an effort on job training and mentoring in prisons
Presidential advisor Jared Kushner departs his house in Washington, D.C., Thursday, Sept. 14, 2017
Kushner’s father, Charles Kushner, did time in a federal prison for tax evasion
According to a White House official, the event is called a Prisoner Reentry Roundtable Discussion, tasked with soliciting information from prison reformers, non-profits, lawmakers, and faith based groups.
The topics include mentoring, vocational education, and job placement.
Kushner is also tasked with heading up middle east peace efforts and is a key point of contact with China.
His father, Charles Kushner, did time in a federal prison for tax evasion, and the younger Kushner has said it made an impression on him. He visited his father in an Alabama prison almost every week during his 14 month sentence.
Slated to attend were Sens. John Cornyn (R-Tex.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), as well as Don Cravins of the National Urban League, Mark Holden Koch Industries, and Ralph Reed of the Faith and Freedom Coalition.
The administration’s most impactful move with respect to prisons was an announcement by Attorney General Jeff Sessions that he was rolling back an Obama practice meant to remove non-violent drug offenders from prison.
There are about 6 million people incarcerated in the U.S., and the effort was meant to cut into mandatory minimum drug sentences. Sessions ordered federal prosecutors to pursue the toughest possible charges against suspects.