The Right Side of History, PART II: The Costs of Injustice
6:11 p.m. (EDT), July 13, 2024, was the most sobering moment in recent American history. But for a miraculous inch, we'd be living in a very different world, and we must act like it. We must keep the energy and continue forward. America is waking up, we have new members of the movement, and we are renewed. We cannot let up for a second if we want to take this country back. As the Republican National Convention is ongoing this week in Milwaukee, we've expanded our reach to new non-traditional Republican voters. Dr. Navarro is released from Federal Prison today, and in his honor, this article returns to the discussion of criminal justice reform.
MAGA Championing Criminal Justice Reform Is the Right Side of History. In the last piece on Criminal Justice Reform, we examined some abuses of the Biden justice system (and pre-existing abuses), which include egregious violations of the Constitution, excessive sentencing, and lopsided justice. The abuses and failures of the justice department overlap, and we continue to witness this via the recent trial of President Trump and the imprisonment of Dr. Peter Navarro and Stephen K. Bannon. We must remember our political prisoners and incorporate criminal justice reform into the list of priorities for change. Learn more about Dr. Navarro's new tough-on-crime but smart on time approach following his personal experiences. This article summarizes some of the failures of the Biden Administration, as compared to President Trump's initiative to reform the criminal justice system via the First Step Act of 2018.
As previously mentioned, MAGA has been at the forefront of the ideological transformation of the Republican party, most notably in what Dr. Navarro calls the MAGA triangle: fair trade that protects American workers and supply chains, an immigration policy that protects our national sovereignty and American workers, and an end to endless wars, a departure from the failed neocon foreign policy. Dr. Navarro has spent the last four months in a federal prison, and Stephen K. Bannon will be in a federal jail until November. President Trump, the presumptive Republican Presidential nominee, continues to face political persecution by his political opponent, Biden. It's clear that the justice system, like so many of our institutions, requires significant reform. The Biden Administration has failed miserably and intentionally imposed abuses of the justice system on the American people. MAGA must champion criminal justice reform, as this is the right side of history. It is time for MAGA to lead the way in reversing years of corruption and injustice. We must elect President Trump.
Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash
President Trump and Criminal Justice Reform
President Trump made significant headway during his administration when it came to criminal justice reform. One of President Trump's initiatives took steps to reduce the Federal Prison population with the First Step Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-391). As summarized by the Congressional Research Office, The First Step Act of 2018 included a "series of criminal justice-related provisions" and three major components,
"1. Correctional reform via the establishment of a risk and needs assessment system at the Bureau of Prisons (BOP)
2. Sentencing reform via changes to penalties for some federal offenses
3. The reauthorization of the Second Chance Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-199)."
After signing the First Step Act of 2018 (Pub. L. No. 115–391, 132 Stat. 5194 (2018)) on Dec 21, 2018, President Trump reduced the federal prison population by a total of 15.5% (per the Bureau of Justice Statistics - a reduction of 27,930 inmates) by the end of his term. See page 5 of the report: Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), Federal Prisoner Statistics Collected Under the First Step Act, 2023.
President Trump has also stated that he will commute the sentences of Ross Ulbricht and J6 defendants. The application of reasonable sentences, reduction in the federal prison population, and effective implementation of halfway houses can significantly reduce the cost of federal spending within the criminal justice system.
Continued Failures of the Biden Administration and the Problems with the American System of Justice:
In Dr. Navarro's recent Washington Times article, Dr. Navarro outlined some critical failures of the Biden administration and the long-standing problems with the federal sentencing processes:
1. Over-sentencing is unconstitutional (8th Amendment) and causes a profound emotional burden to inmates and their families, as well as an excessive financial burden to the taxpayer.
2. "Mandatory minimums" are problematic – most especially for non-violent offenders. This policy regularly puts first-time offenders in prison for 10-15 years or more. This is excessive and needs reform.
3. Excessive and broadly defined charges are used to threaten/sentence inmates, and this is an abuse (i.e., obstruction of justice, J6 defendants, peaceful abortion protesters)
4. The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is ignoring mandates from Congress, such as pre-release custody being delayed (halfway house). It costs US taxpayers more to keep the inmate in prison than it does to release inmates to a halfway house. Delaying or removing these options keeps inmates in federal prison longer, creating an additional emotional burden for the inmates and an economic burden to the taxpayer.
5. The Bureau of Prison BOP fails to release in a timely manner, and this is due to a failure to follow the 2022 full forecast release credits (under First Step and Second Chance). [28 CFR part 523 and part 541, BOP-1176P, RIN 1120-AB76, FSA Time Credits – this is authorized by 18 U.S.C. 3632(d)(4) and Section 101 of the First Step Act of 2018 (P.L.115-391, Dec 21, 2018, 132 Stat 5194) (FSA)]
FULL REPORT ATTACHED BELOW!
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Navarro spent his time productively noting the abuses by the Bureau of Prisons. He will definitely bend Trump’s ear to get this reckless bureau straightened out. 👏👏👏
100 percent back prison reform, and I did before I knew which side of the political aisle I was on. We have people who were falsely convicted or were convicted on circumstancial evidence like Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey in Wisconsin. He was falsely convicted and sentenced to 18 years, then released, and then placed back in prison under suspicious circumstances, and there are more like him. I like these core tenants of prison reform especially first-time offenders! I think that's where to start.