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2016 Postmortem
Showing Original Post only (View all)Bernie Sanders Announces Bill To Abolish Private Prisons, Hints At Marijuana Policy Platform - MP [View all]
Bernie Sanders Announces Bill to Abolish Private Prisons, Hints at Marijuana Policy PlatformRomain Bonilla | MP
August 19, 2015 4:39 pm
<snip>
Bernie Sanders isnt done talking about criminal justice reform in fact, hes merely getting started. The presidential contender continues to rise in the polls and sensible Drug War reforms will only increase his standing with the Democratic base.
Appearing at a campaign rally in Nevada on Tuesday, the Vermont Senator and Democratic presidential candidate talked at length about the unfairly punitive policies that plague the American justice system and disproportionately affect people of color in the United States. Speaking to the crowd of 4,500 supporters gathered outside the University of Nevada, Sen. Sanders went beyond his previous speeches on the issue, announcing that, come September, he will be introducing federal legislation which would abolish for-profit private prisons.
When Congress reconvenes in September, Sanders said, I will be introducing legislation, which takes corporations out of profiteering from running jails.
Tackling the problem of for-profit prisons is a bold move for a federal legislator, as the prison industry is a hugely profitable part of the U.S. economy. The top two private prison companies in the country, Corrections Corporation of America and GEO Group, have a combined annual revenue of over $3 billion, much of which is spent lobbying elected officials to protect their bottom line. While some states, such as New York and Illinois, have enacted laws to ban the privatization of prisons, for-profit prisons have tragically remained a staple of the American criminal justice system, in large part due to the countrys skyrocketing incarceration rates made possible by the War on Drugs.
Bernie Sanders also indicated that the War on Drugs will be a focus of his campaign. We want to deal with minimum sentencing, Sanders said Tuesday, Too many lives have been destroyed for non-violent issues. People that are sent to jail have police records. We have got to change that. Our job is to keep people out of jail, not in jail. According to audience members, Bernie Sanders also said that his campaign will be addressing marijuana legalization in the weeks to come...
<snip>
More: http://marijuanapolitics.com/bernie-sanders-announces-bill-to-abolish-private-prisons-hints-at-marijuana-policy-platform/
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Bernie Sanders Announces Bill To Abolish Private Prisons, Hints At Marijuana Policy Platform - MP [View all]
WillyT
Aug 2015
OP
And state laws legalizing marijuana doesn't stop employers from firing people even for medical pot
cascadiance
Aug 2015
#83
And harnessing the groundswell of support to actually make thses things happen.
Elmer S. E. Dump
Aug 2015
#40
I do not think they are campaign stunts. These are his positions which he has outlined so many time
sabrina 1
Aug 2015
#91
The Clintons have traditionally been MAJOR Drug Warriors, too. Hard to square that with
Romulox
Aug 2015
#12
Private prisons are a disgrace to our nation. It involves predatory people profiteering on the
Cal33
Aug 2015
#13
Bernie does have an important advantage...the ability to actually introduce bills.
libdem4life
Aug 2015
#16
So is it possible for citizen involvement to outnumber the wealthy, and have their own way?
jtuck004
Aug 2015
#20
Since he voted to enable private prisons in 1994, why did he wait 21 years, when he coincidentally..
George II
Aug 2015
#22
You know, I've never put anybody on ignore. I'm starting with you. 'Bye now.
Comrade Grumpy
Aug 2015
#24
The first private prison opened in the mid-1980s. There were very few private prisons for the...
George II
Aug 2015
#55
And Clinton isn't pandering when she is avoiding taking a stand on anything. nm
rhett o rick
Aug 2015
#72
Hillary voted for the Iraq War and said "marriage is between a man and a woman"
Warren DeMontague
Aug 2015
#86
This is starting look like the attacks on Bill Clinton in the 90s, with different "incidents":
George II
Aug 2015
#90
Your last sentence infers something that I never said. But that you infer that says a lot.
George II
Aug 2015
#94
Sanders should go bold and call for the end of federal marijuana prohibition.
Comrade Grumpy
Aug 2015
#23
It should at a minimum be removed as a schedule 1 drug. That's fucking insane!
Elmer S. E. Dump
Aug 2015
#45
3-2-1...waiting for The-news-that-sucks to start with "Why do you think Bernie is soft on crime"?
BlueJazz
Aug 2015
#38
This is real and simple! In the meantime Hillary Clinton takes money from Correction Corp of America
marble falls
Aug 2015
#64