Never thought this is something I’d say, but Donald Trump did something not terrible on Wednesday by announcing his support for bipartisan criminal justice reform legislation that will target criminal recidivism by helping prisoner adjust to life after prison and might even shorten sentences for some drug offenders.
Trump’s support is a big win for activists who have been pushing for criminal justice measures to roll back the stiff penalties imposed as a part of America’s decades-long “war on drugs.”
Supporters of changing the sentencing provisions argue that mandatory minimum sentences and other policies have disproportionately affected African-American and Hispanic communities, while doing little to curb crime.
Trump’s endorsement is critical for getting the Republican support necessary to get a bill passed during the lame-duck session, said Mark Holden, general counsel to Koch Industries, which has been pushing for the changes.
“It always matters if the president is on board … but this president, in particular, it’s important that he gets behind it,” Holden said. “This is an issue that some Republicans haven’t always been focused on.”
Of course, Trump did run on a “tough on crime” platform (or, at least, tough on the kind of crimes not committed by Wall Street brokers in $1000 shoes) so this shows, once again, that moral consistency isn’t exactly his strong suit. While the details of the plan have not yet been released (and, let’s be real, “more jail time for poor people and less for Jared’s daddy” could be in the fine print), this does make me think that there are some advantages to the fact that Trump’s only ideology is whatever is best for Trump. I doubt the dude really gives a shit about criminal justice reform, but this shows that even he can be swayed to do the right thing on occasion. And for that reason, now seems like a very good time to persuade Trump to push for complete federal cannabis legalization.
Think about it. Such a thing would never have been possible with Jeff the racist elf Sessions as attorney general, but more and more states are opting to open recreational weed markets each year. Canada has fully legalized pot (and business is booming) and Mexico appears to be on the brink of doing the same, which would make the U.S. the only country in North American not benefiting from legal markets. Plus, cannabis legalization would create jobs, bring in billions of dollars in tax revenue, and even the most die-hard founding member of the ITMFA club might give a little “thank you” to Trump if he could soon get his pot candies in the 40 states where it’s still illegal. Nothing could make Donald Trump less loathed on the left—except for legalizing pot.
