'I am not going to ask you for one tweet': Caitlyn Jenner says she is not going to involve her kids in campaign to be governor of California but hints she might consult stepdaughter Kim Kardashian on prison reform
Caitlyn Jenner, who is running for governor of California, has said that she would not be asking any of her ten children and step-children, which includes the Kardashians, to help with her gubernatorial campaign.
The 71-year-old gold medal-winning Olympic athlete and reality TV star made the remarks during a Sunday interview with CNN's Dana Bash.
'My family has certainly been out in the media and they've taken their shots and they don't need to take any more,' Jenner said.
Caitlyn Jenner said was keen to distance herself from the ten children and stepchildren including the Kardashians during her run to be Governor of California
Jenner explained that she has a good relationship with her kids but that they were not involved with her political ambitions.
'I said, "I am not going to ask you for one tweet. I'm not going to ask you for one thing. You guys go live your life. This is my deal.'"
Jenner said that her kids were 'scared' about her running for the governorship primarily for her safety and because they were 'scared of what the media is going to do.'
Jenner praised her children and their entrepreneurial talents but said her family would not play a role in her election campaign. She also noted that she differs from her stepdaughter Kim Kardashian on halting the death penalty.
Jenner explained that she has a good relationship with her kids and stepkids but that they were not involved with her political ambitions. Kim Kardashian and Caitlyn Jenner are pictured in February last year.
The clan: Khloe Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Kendall Jenner, Kourtney Kardashian, Kim Kardashian West, North West, Caitlyn Jenner and Kylie Jenner pictured in February 2016 in New York City
Over the past two years, Kardashian has become a force in the world of criminal justice reform.
She successfully lobbied former President Trump, spent time on the phone with governors and legislators, written letters in support of clemency petitions and paid legal bills for people trying to get out of prison.
But it appears the neither she nor her famous family will be publicly endorsing Jenner's.
Jenner's right-leaning politics clash with Kardashian's approach to prison reform makes it even more polarizing.
Kardashian actually falls more into line with current governor, Gavin Newsom's approach to crime which favors rehabilitation and support for prisoners re-entering society, in addition to investing in crime prevention.
in the past Kim Kardashian had said she was 'very supportive of Governor Newsom' and his work to remove the death penalty in California
Speaking out: Kim has visited the White House in the past and made speeches about a subject she is passionate about, criminal justice reform. Pictured June 13, 2019
In the past Kardashian had said she was 'very supportive of Governor Newsom' and his work to remove the death penalty in California. He ordered a moratorium on executions in spring of 2019.
'I love Kim and I think she's doing a great job with the criminal justice system. And if I -- I become governor, I would follow her guidance in that because she has been very, very good on that and the rehabilitation side of it, but I don't have her involved in the campaign at all whatsoever,' Jenner emphasized.
'I can't say we've never discussed it but she's great. I love Kimberly. She's smart, great businesswoman and very dedicated, you know, to doing a better job with criminal justice and she would have my ear, I can tell you that when I'm up in Sacramento.'
The former Olympian and reality TV star spoke to CNN's Dana Bash, right, on Sunday
During the conversation, CNN's Dana Bash tells Jenner that there are 1.75 million undocumented workers in California before asking her if they should have a chance at citizenship. 'Absolutely, yeah. They should,' Jenner says. Migrants pictured on April 21
Also during the interview, Jenner outlined her thoughts on the the current immigration crisis.
She said she believes undocumented immigrants should have an opportunity to become citizens.
During the conversation, Bash says there are 1.75 million undocumented workers in California before asking Jenner if they should have a chance at citizenship.
'Absolutely, yeah. They should. I mean, there's a lot of people, but personally I have met some of the most wonderful people who are immigrants, who have come to this country and they are just model citizens. They are just great people and I would fight for them to be US citizens,' Jenner told Bash.
'What's been happening on the border was honestly one of the reasons I decided to run for governor,' Jenner said. 'I was watching people dying come across the river, kids in cages -- whatever you want to call them.'
Jenner, who has never held political office, surprised many when she announced on April 23 that she was taking on embattled Democrat Gavin Newsom.
Last week Jenner told Sean Hannity that she was in favor of reforming the immigration system, but was opposed to sanctuary cities.
'I am pro-law enforcement, pro-Border Patrol, pro-ICE,' she said.
Jenner said that she would support resumption of the border wall with Mexico, describing it as a useful tool in stemming migration.
'I am all for the wall, I would secure the wall,' she said. 'We can't have a state, we can't have a country without a secure wall.
'You have two questions here. One is stopping people from coming in illegally into the state. And then the second question is, what do we do with the people that are here? We are a compassionate country, okay? We are a compassionate state.
'Some help, I mean, some people we're going to send back, okay, no question about that. But I have met some of the greatest immigrants into our country.'
Last week, Jenner spoke to Sean Hannity on Fox News to discuss the race for governor
Jenner spoke to Hannity on Wednesday night for her first interview about her candidacy
During her interview with Hannity, she also expressed her concern about Joe Biden, saying that the president 'scares me'.
'Biden, I don't think I've agreed with anything,' she said. 'I don't think, since he's been in there, he has done anything for the American worker, maybe other ones. So, it is a 180-degree turn in our country, going the other direction, and it scares me.'
Hannity asked what her political allegiance was, and Jenner said she saw herself not as a Republican but rather as 'a thoughtful disrupter'.
She said: 'I kind of played around with that term, and originally I started out as a compassionate disruptor, and then I was thinking the other day, I think I'm more of a thoughtful disruptor.
'I have common sense, I see what is going on. I have always been on the Republican side as I have conservative economic values. Socially I have been much more progressive all my life. I get it. People need help. But you can't have social programs without a strong economy,' Jenner said.
She added: 'I can get along with everyone. I don't care if you are a Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, vegetarian.'
Newsom is facing a recall election, after the 1.495 million-signature threshold on a petition for his recall, launched in February 2020, was easily passed.
The 53-year-old has been governor of the most populous state in the country since January 2019.
Jenner described herself as 'a fighter' who wants the best for her state.
In a slick new campaign advert, Jenner described the race as 'perhaps my most important yet', and said she wanted to 'bring back the gold to the Golden State'.
'I want to take that same fight, that same spirit, go to Sacramento, surround myself with some of the smartest people out there - I am an outsider. I understand that - smartest people out there, because now I'm in a race for solutions.
'I need to find solutions to be able to turn this state around. I absolutely love this state. I'm a fighter. Always have been.'
She promised to bring 'compassion, honesty and leadership' to the role.
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