Detroit’s former Democratic Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick is one step closer to making his full-on Republican transition this campaign season, as the now-pastor and executive director of the Memphis-based criminal justice reform nonprofit Taking Action for Good will deliver the keynote address at the Aug. 21 Oakland County Republican Party’s Lincoln Day Dinner.
He will be joined by Detroit-born Dr. Ben Carson, whose failed 2016 presidential campaign ultimately landed him a role as the secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development in Donald Trump’s administration.
In a post on social media on Aug. 13, Vance Patrick, Chairman of the Oakland County Republican Party, announced Kilpatrick’s appearance, which will take place at the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi.
“I’m proud to announce that Kwame Kilpatrick will be a featured speaker at next Wednesday’s @oakland_party Lincoln Day Dinner!” Vance wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
“Kwame Kilpatrick found his faith and relationship with God while incarcerated and had his sentence commuted by @realDonaldTrump. His speech will focus on his repentance and redemption, a message all would be well served to hear. The GOP is inclusive, not exclusive.”
Kilpatrick, in 2013, was sentenced to serve 28 years on 24 counts of using his positions as mayor and state representative to carry out a decade-long criminal racket involving extortion, bribery, conspiracy, and fraud. In 2021, however, Kilpatrick had his prison sentence commuted by then-President Trump on his final day in office after Kilpatrick served just eight years of his 28-year sentence.
Ever since, Kilpatrick has been making his rounds across the Republican circuit. He previously served as the keynote speaker for an event called “Let Us Reason Together: Our Faith, Our Values, Our Politics,” where he spoke enthusiastically to a predominantly Black crowd and urged them to resist peer pressure and publicly proclaim their support for Trump. Additionally, earlier this year, Kilpatrick attended a Trump rally in Saginaw, then endorsed Trump for president a few weeks later.
During his endorsement, Kilpatrick said: “I can never thank President Trump enough for what he’s done for me and my family by giving me freedom. But I believe this election and the issues involved are personal to every family and every person in America.”
Vance went on the defensive about his announcement of Kilpatrick’s appearance, after several X users began blasting Kilpatrick as a pardoned criminal who had failed to pay restitution. Vance said he was “exceptionally” proud of Kilpatrick and the former mayor “…has a great story of redemption and ministry.”
Other X users chimed in to say that Kilpatrick is living a good life with his new family in a lux Novi home, yet he’s failed to pay back the hundreds of thousands of dollars he owes the city of Detroit and the federal government.
Earlier this year, Kilpatrick wrote in a court filing: “I don’t believe I owe the government any monies. I believe treasury funds and other money are exempt from garnishment.” According to the federal government, Kilpatrick still owes $824,774 for the crimes he was convicted of more than a decade ago.
Doors for the Aug. 21 event open at 5:30 p.m., with dinner slated to start at 7:15 p.m. Ticket prices for the fundraiser start at $125, with tickets including meet-and-greet access with Carson starting at $200.
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