Ja’Ron Smith: Who Is The White House Adviser Speaking At The 2020 RNC?

Ja’Ron Smith will be one of the featured speakers on the final day of the Republican National Convention on Thursday. The political adviser will address the RNC and likely speak about his experience working with the administration of President Donald Trump. He has served as an Assistant to the President for domestic policy since April 2019 and was previously an adviser on Director of Urban Affairs and Revitalization since Trump entered the White House in January 2017.

Smith Worked With High-Profile Republicans As He Rose Through The Party

Smith was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on July 29, 1982. He and his four siblings were raised solely by their father for periods of his childhood as his mother dealt with addiction issues, according to a profile by The New York Times. He attended Howard University, a historically Black university in Washington, D.C., where he studied finance and economics. He went on to attend the university’s divinity school, earning a Master of Divinity.

It was during this time of his life that Smith began to get involved in the Republican Party. Brandon Andrews, a former Republican Senate aide and a friend of Smith, explained to The New York Times that it was a combination of his faith and growing up in a Democrat-controlled Cleveland that lead to his interest in the GOP.

“He grew up in an area that was dominated by Democratic politics and yet still had many of the socioeconomic issues that you see in other urban centers. He’s said, ‘I asked myself why does this exist, and if what we’ve been doing isn’t working, then why not try something different?'”

While still a student at Howard, he was brought on as an intern by Oklahoma Representative J.C. Watts. He would go on to work for then-Indiana Rep. Mike Pence, Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott.

Trump Has Called Smith ‘My Star’

Smith has served a variety of roles since joining the administration, keeping a low profile while working alongside senior aides. Most notable among those is Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. He was involved in putting together Kushner’s First Step Act, a criminal justice reform bill that was signed into law in 2018. Kushner praised Smith for his ability to take a bipartisan approach to develop policy.

“He’s a pragmatist, he’s a deal maker, he’s a ‘how do we get to yes’ type of person. He does believe that you have to go into places that Republicans don’t normally go,” said Kushner.

He also helped put together Trump’s Opportunity Zone program, which offers tax incentive opportunities to companies investing in economically-distressed communities.

His role in the administration received more public attention in August 2018, when Kellyanne Conway mentioned him in response to questions regarding the lack of high-ranking Black officials in the Trump White House. At that point, he had become the highest-ranking Black member of the Trump White House.

In June 2020, Smith joined Trump and others for a roundtable discussion on police tactics following the death of George Floyd at the hands of law enforcement and the protests in response. The president was complimentary throughout, referring to Smith as “my star,” as reported by Breitbart. He would help write Trump’s Executive Order on Safe Policing for Safe Communities, which was signed a week later.