John Kelly served as the White House chief of staff from July 2017 to January 2019. Prior to this, he was the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security from January 2017 to July 2017. In his role, Kelly played a “crucial role” in resurrecting the idea of separating immigrant families and has defended the policy.
2019: Kelly Joined Board Of Directors For Caliburn International, Parent Company Of Comprehensive Health Services Which Operates Homestead And Three Other Shelters For Unaccompanied Immigrant Children In Texas. “In April, protesters outside the nation’s largest facility for unaccompanied migrant children noticed a familiar face enter the massive, fenced site in Homestead, Florida: former White House chief of staff John Kelly. Soon after, a local television station recorded footage of him riding on the back of a golf cart as he toured the grounds. It wasn’t clear why he was there, but Friday, Caliburn International confirmed to CBS News that Kelly had joined its board of directors. Caliburn is the parent company of Comprehensive Health Services, which operates Homestead and three other shelters for unaccompanied migrant children in Texas.” [CBS News, 5/3/19]
Headline: CBS News: “John Kelly joins board of company operating largest shelter for unaccompanied migrant children.” [CBS News, 5/3/19]
Kelly Is Represented By Worldwide Speakers Group. [Worldwide Speakers Group – John F. Kelly, accessed 11/11/20]
September 2019: Kelly Scheduled To Give Keynote Presentation At Global Security Exchange (GSX). [GSX press release, accessed 11/11/20]
January 2020: Kelly Scheduled To Speak At San Joaquin Valley Town Hall Lecture Series In Fresno, CA. “Kelly, who will be in Fresno on Wednesday to discuss the U.S. role in worldwide geopolitics at the San Joaquin Valley Town Hall lecture series, told The Bee this week that “there used to be” people within the White House who could offer frank and honest counsel to President Trump to dissuade him from policy and political missteps – without being banished for disloyalty.” [Fresno Bee, 1/13/20]
January 2020: Kelly Spoke At Ringling College Library Association Town Hall In Sarasota, FL. [Herald-Tribune, 1/30/20]
February 2020: Kelly Scheduled To Be Keynote Speaker For Indiana Chamber Of Commerce Chamber Day Dinner. “The Indiana Chamber of Commerce is providing two opportunities to stay connected with state policymakers in 2020. The Chamber Day Dinner, sponsored by Ice Miller LLP, takes place on February 11th at the Indiana Roof Ballroom in downtown Indianapolis. Former White House Chief of Staff and retired U.S. Marine Corps. General John F. Kelly will serve as the keynote speaker.” [WBIW, 12/5/19]
February 2020: Kelly Scheduled To Give Speech At Drew University Forum In New Jersey. [Drew Events, 2/12/20]
February 2020: Kelly Scheduled To Appear At Wasatch Speaker Series In Salt Lake City, UT. [Wasatch Speaker Series, 2/18/20]
March 2020: Kelly Scheduled To Give Keynote Speech At 2020 NaplesNEXT Ideas Festival In Florida. [NaplesNEXT press release, 1/14/20]
January 2021: Kelly Scheduled To Speak At Peoples Co.’s Land Investment Expo In Des Moines, IA. “John F. Kelly, President Donald Trump’s former chief of staff, will be a keynote speaker at the Peoples Co.’s Land Investment Expo in Des Moines shortly before the presidential inauguration. … At the Des Moines event, Kelly is expected to “share his experiences spanning political administrations,” including as commander of the U.S. Southern Command under then-President Barack Obama and as Trump’s secretary of homeland security and chief of staff, said Peoples’ President Steve Bruere.” [Des Moines Register, 9/25/20]
Kelly And Sessions Played “Crucial Roles” In Resurrecting And Implementing Family Separation Policy. “It was an idea conceived by senior immigration enforcement officials and U.S. border agents who had confronted the migrant crisis of 2014. By ramping up criminal prosecutions and separating families who entered the country illegally, they said, the government could stop the influx. Their idea went to top Obama administration officials at the White House and the Department of Homeland Security. Then it went into a drawer, like a blueprint for a weapon too terrible to use… It took the alignment of four distinct personalities to dust off the idea and turn it into a legal, operational and message-driven system for family separation at the border. President Trump, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, White House senior policy adviser Stephen Miller and White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly played crucial roles in resurrecting the proposal and making it actionable.” [Washington Post, 6/19/18]
USA Today: “Kelly Defended The Technique Of Separating Undocumented Immigrants From Their Children As A Necessary Evil.” “President Trump’s chief of staff John Kelly defended the technique of separating undocumented immigrants from their children as a necessary evil in the administration’s effort to increase border security during an interview with National Public Radio Thursday. … Kelly disputed the notion that such action was cruel. “The children will be taken care of — put into foster care or whatever,” Kelly said. “But the big point is they elected to come illegally into the United States and this is a technique that no one hopes will be used extensively or for very long.”” [USA Today, 5/11/18]
Headline: USA Today: “John Kelly defends separating immigrant families, saying ‘name of the game is deterrence.’” [USA Today, 5/11/18]
Headline: CNN: “Kelly: DHS is considering separating undocumented children from their parents at the border.” [CNN, 3/7/17]
