Alice Johnson, granted clemency by Trump, to speak at GOP convention: report

Criminal justice reform advocate Alice Marie Johnson, who was granted clemency by President Trump in 2018, is slated to speak at the Republican National Convention next week.

“I’ll be there talking about criminal justice reform, that is my main mission,” Johnson told the Daily Beast. “I’m there because I’ve been affected by our criminal justice system, and that’s my mission.”

Johnson, 65, previously was serving a life sentence on nonviolent drug and money laundering charges. She was released from the Aliceville Federal Correctional Institution two years ago after serving 21 years in prison.

The president commuted her sentence after reality TV star Kim Kardashian West, an advocate for criminal justice reform, spoke with him on a visit to the White House.

Johnson was also given the spotlight at the May 2019 State of the Union address, where she was applauded while the president discussed a bipartisan criminal justice reform bill.

“I left so many people behind, and I made a promise to the women there that I would fight for this wherever and whenever I can,” Johnson told the Daily Beast of her time in prison.

In February, the Trump campaign dropped a $10 million Super Bowl ad revolving around Johnson’s story, serving as a pitch to African American voters.