Criminal justice bill clears hurdle in the Senate on strong bipartisan vote (82-12)

[Eugene]

Source: Washington Post

Criminal justice bill clears hurdle in the Senate on strong bipartisan vote

By Seung Min Kim
December 17 at 7:02 PM

The Senate’s sweeping overhaul of the criminal justice system cleared a major hurdle Monday, with an overwhelming majority helping to advance what probably will be one of President Trump’s final bipartisan accomplishments from his first two years in office.

Senators voted 82 to 12 to end debate on the First Step Act and steer the legislation to a final vote, probably scheduled for Tuesday.

The bill would revise several sentencing laws, such as reducing the “three strikes” penalty for drug felonies from life behind bars to 25 years and retroactively limiting the disparity in sentencing guidelines between crack and powder cocaine offenses. The latter would affect about 2,000 current federal inmates.

It also overhauls the federal prison system to help inmates earn reduced sentences and lower recidivism rates. A different version passed the House this year, so the House would have to pass the latest draft before it can be sent to Trump for his signature.

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Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/criminal-justice-bill-clears-hurdle-in-the-senate-on-strong-bipartisan-vote/2018/12/17/da9e09e0-0232-11e9-8186-4ec26a485713_story.html

[Voltaire2]

1. Sorry but whenever a bill passes with

overwhelming bipartisan support I just assume it is corrupt beyond comprehension.

[beachbum bob]

2. in this case, some improvements for sure