Jones and Samantha Bee also talk about the Democratic front-runners, prisoners voting rights and why they're so giddy to see Trump's tax returns.
Perhaps it's in part due to his own efforts on behalf of the incarcerated, but Van Jones admitted he's extremely impressed with Kim Kardashian, going so far as to call her "brilliant."
He also admitted during his appearance on "Watch What Happens Live" Thursday night that he pre-judged her, as he believes many people do. "I still her had kind of like frozen in time back in the Paris Hilton days," he admitted before going on to say that "she's brilliant; she is no joke."
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View StoryHe and fellow guest Samantha Bee also talked about some of their favorites among the Democratic front-runners, including touchy Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders' battle for prison voting rights, before getting into why they're so very giddy to see Donald Trump's tax returns.
Kim and Donald
Jones has spent time working with Kardashian as she pursues becoming a lawyer herself. In fact, he said he speaks to her a few times a week and thinks she'll be a fantastic lawyer.
"She's incredibly persuasive and persistent and she eats law books for breakfast," he said by way of explanation. And it was that persuasiveness that the "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" star put on full display with Trump, convincing him to free Alice Johnson.
"It was like watching a ballerina hypnotize a grizzly bear," Jones said of seeing Kardashian handle the president.
"She cares a lot about criminal justice," he said of the reality star. "I think people thought it was some kind of publicity stunt a year ago. She's the only celebrity I know-- usually I'm calling celebrities and asking them to help me on cases. She called me asking me to help her on cases."
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View StoryBiden and Bernie
Samantha Bee participated in a takedown of Joe Biden's touchy approach back during her time on "The Daily Show," but she admitted she never thought he'd actually apologize for it. "It was just so well-known," she said of his behavior. "We really had a lot of fun with it at 'The Daily Show.' Only now has he come to understand that he cannot greet people with a gentle hair sniff."
But while Biden is dealing with the baggage of his past actions, which he has apologized for and promises to be better in the future, Bernie Sanders has come under flak recently for arguing that prisoners should having voting rights like any other citizen of the United States.
Jones, who has lobbied extensively against the current prison system as it stands as ineffective and systemically racist, agreed with him.
"I think we need to have as much participation as possible and, you know, just because somebody did something wrong, maybe got caught, got in trouble, I want people to have as much attachment back to doing right as possible," he explained. "If somebody voting makes them feel like they've got a stake in society, that's a good thing.
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View StoryTrumped Taxes
There was not a moment through the entire show or aftershow that got both Jones and Bee giddy like school children than when they were asked about Trump's taxes. Democrats are making moves now to try and force them into the public eye, with Trump jockeying to block it at every turn.
"I wanna see them so bad," Bee admitted.
Jones feels confident the issue will wind up in court, but that could still prove beneficial to those who want them released. "I think the Democrats have a good shot," he said. "The language of the statute is clear. It says, 'Shall release.' So I think the Democrats have a very good shot."
But he real question that can only be answered with the release and examination of those tax returns is, "Why is he so scared?"
"He's so scared," Jones said of Trump. "I don't know why."
But he has a theory. He thinks that Trump is so full of bluster in every facet of his life that he may be all bluster in his finances, too. "I think it may turn out that he's worth $43,000," he said. "I think he might be smaller than we think ... in terms of his bank account."
Yeah, he just let that one linger with a wry smile.
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