In an age of congressional gridlock, which could get worse with a divided Capitol Hill come January, one would think lawmakers would flock to any sensible idea drawing bipartisan support and run with it as fast as they could. Criminal justice reform, an effort that welcomed the presidents endorsement on Wednesday, seems to be just the issue.
Except for one snag.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told reporters last week he would have to see how it stacks up against our other priorities going into the end of our session.
Apparently, the fact that the U.S. puts more men and women behind bars than the rest of the democratic world and that an estimated 2.7 children have at least one parent in prison arent high on the Senate priority list.
Criminal justice reform isnt a political trick to go soft on crime and somehow let hardened criminals roam the streets. Its a compassionate effort to change lives, keep offenders out of the revolving door and maintain the integrity of families, all of which makes for better economics and a more stable America.
Several legislative reforms have floated around the House and Senate, and the White House has embraced its own version of a reform package. The basic aim of the various bills is to give more latitude to judges when sentencing offenders, especially those who fall in the nonviolent, drug-related category. The new laws would shorten the tough on drugs mandatory minimum sentences of the 1980s, along with diminishing the three strikes punishment to something more reasonable instead of life in prison.
These ideas have strong support across the aisle, receiving endorsements from perceived opposites such as the Koch brothers and the American Civil Liberties Union. Utahs Republican Sen. Mike Lee has been a longtime advocate and co-sponsor of legislation from his Democratic colleagues, including Sens. Cory Booker, N.J., Dick Durbin, Ill., and Dianne Feinstein, Calif.
Lee reaffirmed his support for reform on Tuesday in an op-ed for Fox News in which he detailed the story of a Utah father convicted of petty drug crimes. Because this man had a gun in his possession at the time of the transaction, even though he didnt use it, the judge was forced to hand down a 55-year sentence.
So what is McConnell waiting for?
He may be worried of a schism within his own party. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., for instance, has been a vocal dissenter and could take a few Republican senators with him, reports Politico. But McConnell must not let party politics get in the way of a chance to give one-time criminals a second shot at a dignified life. To play games at a time like this is irresponsible leadership.
The country has learned theres a better way to reform and revitalize those who succumb to criminal behavior; the resounding success of Utahs Other Side Academy and San Franciscos Delancey Street are testaments to that fact. Whether the country has the right leaders to make the right changes is less certain.
These bills are an important first step for criminal justice reform, and may be the beginning of better, less partisan days in America. McConnell should put these ideas on the floor, members should pass them, the president should sign them and the country should move forward.
The Deseret News, Salt Lake City, Utah
