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[Tripon]

(CNN)The attorney general on Friday made an unfortunate announcement that will impact the lives of millions of Americans: he issued new instructions for prosecutors to charge suspects with the most serious provable offenses, "those that carry the most substantial guidelines sentence, including mandatory minimum sentences."

Mandatory minimum sentences have unfairly and disproportionately incarcerated a generation of minorities. Eric Holder, the attorney general under President Obama, issued guidelines to U.S. Attorneys that they should refrain from seeking long sentences for nonviolent drug offenders.

I agreed with him then and still do. In fact, I'm the author of a bipartisan bill with Senator Leahy to change the law on this matter. Until we pass that bill, though, the discretion on enforcement -- and the lives of many young drug offenders -- lies with the current attorney general

And make no mistake, the lives of many drug offenders are ruined the day they receive that long sentence the attorney general wants them to have.

If I told you that one out of three African-American males is forbidden by law from voting, you might think I was talking about Jim Crow 50 years ago.

Yet today, a third of African-American males are still prevented from voting, primarily because of the War on Drugs.

The War on Drugs has disproportionately affected young black males.

The ACLU reports that blacks are four to five times likelier to be convicted for drug possession, although surveys indicate that blacks and whites use drugs at similar rates. The majority of illegal drug users and dealers nationwide are white, but three-fourths of all people in prison for drug offenses are African American or Latino.

By design, mandatory sentencing laws take discretion away from judges so as to impose harsh sentences, regardless of circumstances. Our prison population, meanwhile, has increased by over 700% since the 1980s, and 90% of them are nonviolent offenders. The costs of our prison system now approach nearly $100 billion a year. It costs too much, in both the impact on people's lives and on our tax dollars.

Mandatory minimum sentencing has done little to address the very real problem of drug abuse while also doing great damage by destroying so many lives, and most Americans now realize it.

Proposition 47 recently passed in California, and it has spurred a cultural change in the way nonviolent drug offenders are treated, resulting in more than 13,000 fewer prisoners and a savings of $150 million, according to a Stanford Law School study.

http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/15/opinions/sessions-is-wrong-rand-paul-opinion/

 

[MisterR]

Good on Rand Paul for writing this and trying to pass legislation. As big of an asshole as he is on most stuff, he has a few good stances on stuff like this and government spying.

 

[Journeywalker]

As much as I disagree with Libertarian Republicans, I respect how they stick to their principles.

 

[BobbyRobby]

Sessions sucks. Good on Rand for this.

 

[Balphon]

There's been a lot of bipartisan support for criminal justice reform in Congress, and it's desperately needed. The problem has been people like Sessions and Tom Cotton standing in the way.

The issue is only going to become more acute with Sessions as AG, too.

 

[XMonkey]

Hey Rand, that's the point!

 

[bobbychalkers]

Unfortunately, that's an intended feature not a bug.

 

[Snaku]

Hey Rand, that's the point!

Yeah, gotta feed the prison industrial complex to keep the kick backs from their lobbyists coming.

 

[StoveOven]

It's nice that he's saying this, and he's right. But he also voted to approve Sessions as AG when he knew this would be the outcome.

Talk is cheap.

 

[Host Samurai]

That evil elf is the worst part of this administration.

 

[DerekOfTheDykes]

And as a member of the tea party wave, Rand Paul knows a thing or two about shitty policies that would ultimately do more harm than good.

 

[Dude Abides]

Appointing this unreconstructed Confederate clown is the worst thing Gump's done.

 

[Wolfgunblood Garopa]

I love this. Noted member of Team Ruin Lives has some trepidation about a policy that ruins lives.

It's like they take us all for complete idiots who have no understanding of history or what their party actually stands for. Did Rand Paul not know who Jeff Sessions is, and that he would be Attorney General when Trump won? Did he not understand what Trump meant by 'law and order', or understand what was meant when he actually suggested the use of 'stop and frisk'? He's either a complete moron or he thinks we all are.

 

[Crocodile]

Reminder that Rand Paul voted to confirmed Sessions for AG because he was annoyed Democrats were calling Sessions racist :/

 

[kirblar]

As much as I disagree with Libertarian Republicans, I respect how they stick to their principles.

But he doesn't. He voted to confirm Sessions. Any social justice principles are second behind tax cuts.

 

[Lambtron]

Reminder that Rand Paul voted to confirmed Sessions for AG because he was annoyed Democrats were calling Sessions racist :/

Yeah. Zero credit for this fucking coward. Fuck Rand Paul, and it's still fuck Jeff Sessions.

 

[Caelus]

Reminder that Rand Paul voted to confirmed Sessions for AG because he was annoyed Democrats were calling Sessions racist :/

Talk is cheap.

Yup. No pat on the back or cookie jar for this asshole, show some spine when there are real consequences on the line.

 

[entremet]

Yawn. More empty lip service from Paul.

 

[Widdle Puppy]

One thing that I respect about rand is that he is fairly principled. He doesn't flip flop around and kiss all kinds of ass like many other republicans. I think most of his views are terrible though.

 

[PepsimanVsJoe]

Go fuck yourself Rand.

Sessions is a monster that you voted to unleash on this country.

 

[BajiBoxer]

Like McCain and others, do something rather than acting like you're just a tv analyst. Every chance to take substantial action, these cowards roll over.

 

[Hazmat]

You don't get to vote to confirm a piece of shit and then expect credit when you disapprove of him doing piece of shit things. The senate is so close that just one Republican making a stand could matter, but Rand Paul is just another pussy.