March 14, 2020 “Give atonement so there will not be a plague” Ki Sisa 30:12
Criminal justice reform has gone mainstream with Democrats anxious to truly reflect the 8th Amendment and Republicans tired of paying for mass incarceration. The bi-partisan First Step bill took an historic, albeit modest, “first step”, retroactively equating crack and powdered cocaine and improving women prisoner protections. It doesn’t, however, address jailing currently 450,000 thousand, practically none of whom are flight risks, almost all of whom can’t afford bail imposed by antiquated rules and a racist system. Nor does it commute excessive sentences, nor provide for re-absorption, prison education, or mental health. On the other hand, supporters or contributors to Donald Trump earn clemency: his biographer (mail fraud), an Illinois governor (bribery), three war criminals who disgraced their services, a Cheney aide who exposed a CIA agent, a far-right conspiracy theorist (illegal political contribution scheme), armed occupiers of a federal wildlife refuge, a Fox contributor, a disgraced Republican Congressman, a lobbyist, and a convicted NFL owner. Atonement? Quid quo pro!