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Top GOP Presidential Contenders Support Mandatory Minimum Reform

Post Date: July 18, 2014

According to a new Gallup poll, “four potential Republican presidential candidates stand out above the rest of the possible field.” The standard for “standing out” seems to be that all four are “familiar to more than 60 of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents and have net favorable ratings of at least 43-percentage points.”

The four potential candidates who meet that standard are former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, Texas Governor Rick Perry, Representative Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, and Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky.

Interestingly, all four leading contenders support mandatory minimum reform.

Governor Huckabee has long been critical of harsh mandatory sentences, especially for nonviolent drug offenders. He’s called three strikes laws “nonsense” that have “created a system that is overrun with people,” adding that “the cost is choking us.” And after the Department of Justice announced new guidelines for prosecuting drug offenders, Huckabee tweeted, “Finally found something I can agree with Eric Holder on—sentencing too many people to prison for nonviolent drug crimes.” (You can also listen to a great conversation between Huckabee and Ted Nugent on the topic here.)

Texas Governor Rick Perry has been similarly outspoken on the need for criminal justice and sentencing reforms. At a panel earlier this year at CPAC, Governor Perry criticized “harsh minimum sentencing guidelines” and endorsed alternatives to incarceration for drug offenders. He highlighted Texas’ reforms, and added that Texas is “not a soft on crime state, but I hope we get the reputation of being a smart on crime state.” Perry went further, explaining that conservatives should be leading on criminal justice reform: “You want to talk about real conservative governance? Shut prisons down. Save that money.”

Congressman Paul Ryan has also embraced sentencing reform. Earlier this year, Congressman Ryan visited “some of the poorest communities in America, trying to find out what really works in the fight to achieve equal opportunity.” He was asked to “reflect on a previously held ideological view that had changed over the course of his learning tour.” According to Ron Christie, the author of the piece, “Without hesitation, Ryan delved into the need to reform federal sentencing guidelines.” Ryan said:

I think our sentencing guidelines need to be revisited with an eye towards what actually works to make sure a person can hit their upward potential. Is it better to send someone to a successfully proven drug rehab program so they can knock the habit and get back on their feet again, or is it [better to] put them away for 16 years?

And then added:

I think we had a trend in America for a long time on mandatory minimums where we took away discretion from judges. I think there’s an appreciation that that approach has some collateral damage—that that approach is missing in many ways…I think there is a new appreciation that we need to give judges more discretion in these areas.

Congressman Ryan is currently a co-sponsor of the “Smarter Sentencing Act,” which would significantly reform federal mandatory minimum laws.

Senator Paul is probably the most outspoken critic of mandatory minimum laws. Not only has Senator Paul sponsored the excellent “Justice Safety Valve Act,” which would restore some judicial discretion to all federal crimes that carry mandatory minimums, he’s called mandatory minimums a “major culprit in our unbalanced and often unjust drug laws.” What’s more, Senator Paul has actually called for eliminating mandatory minimums altogether.

In some ways, it is fascinating and remarkable to think that all of the top four GOP presidential contenders have publicly called into question mandatory minimums and endorsed reform or repeal of mandatory minimum laws. Of course, in other ways it’s not so remarkable. I’ve long held that the consistent application of basic conservative principles demands repeal of mandatory minimums, and noteworthy conservatives have been sounding those themes for years.

Conservatives understand that government has certain clearly defined roles. Criminal justice is obviously one such role. At the same time, government needs to be efficient and effective, giving taxpayers the most “bang for their buck.”

It is incredibly encouraging to see that many leaders of the Republican party have (finally!) recognized that mandatory minimums are a fool’s errand, and are committed to fixing the problems these laws have created.

(And by the way, are we really still going to pretend there’s a political downside to opposing mandatory minimums?)
~Greg Newburn, FAMM Florida Project Director

http://famm.org/top-gop-presidential...inimum-reform/