Trump's call for criminal justice reform was a ploy to distract from midterm losses: White House sources

President Donald Trump is not pressuring Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to pursue criminal justice reform even though he said it was a priority following the midterm elections.

Politico reported on Monday that reform of the criminal justice system is languishing because Trump's public call for legislation had largely been a ruse to distract from Republican losses in midterm elections.

The report explained:

Trump took up the cause of criminal justice reform last month at the urging of his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, but the president’s endorsement was as much an effort to distract from Republican losses in the midterm elections as a reflection of his heartfelt convictions, according to two sources familiar with his thinking. Indeed, Trump had previously said that some of the drug offenders toward whom the bill would show leniency should receive the death penalty.

“I keep hearing that’s he’s all for it. I haven’t seen any evidence of that,” one GOP senator told Politico.

According to the report, Trump is not willing to spend political capital on reform.

“Jared’s invested in it. And therefore [Trump] is. But he hasn’t called me,” another Republican senator insisted.