Tag: candidates on crime
Posted on Fri Dec 14, 2007 at 11:09:00 PM EST
Tags: 2008, candidates on crime (all tags)
The January 8 issue of Ebony Magazine has an interview with Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, Barack Obama and Bill Richardson on their crime and punishment agendas if elected President. It's not yet available online, but can be read at Lexis.com.
Joe Biden isn't interviewed. I'm surprised he didn't take the opportunity to push his new election-year omnibus crime bill, that like his 1994 bill (pdf), mass-federalizes a host of crimes that are and should continue to be prosecuted at the state level. His new bill, S. 2237, introduced October 25, just in time for him to campaign as your toughest law and order Democrat, proposes spending billions on 1,000 new FBI agents, 500 new DEA agents, and 50,000 more police officers, increasing prison sentences and locking up more disadvantaged youths by branding them gang members. (On the plus side, it has some prevention funding and it equalizes crack and powder penalties at the current powder ratio, although he ties the reduction to increased salaries for drug prosecutors and agents. There are better crack-powder bills and on the whole, Biden's bill should be strongly opposed.) As of today, the only co-sponsor of Biden's bill is John Kerry.
By contrast (and in some cases, seemingly in agreement) here's what the other Democratic candidates are advocating. (The Ebony interview covers a lot more topics such as civil rights, jobs and education, so be sure to either check their site for when its available free online or pick up a copy at the newstand.)
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