In order to differentiate among the 2020 candidates, it's sometimes helpful to compare their stance on various issues. In fact, if you're looking for some insight into what 2020 candidates think about criminal justice reform, this list will give you an idea of how they have approached the issue. Generally, it seems that most candidates believe that criminal justice reform is a necessity, but they differ in the reform issues that they have prioritized.
Criminal justice reform encompasses a wide range of issues that relate to rectifying problems within the American criminal justice system. For example, according to the National Criminal Justice Association and the National Conference of State Legislatures, some common criminal justice issues in the United States include mass incarceration, high recidivism (prison reentry) rates, cash bail, and inadequate prison mental and physical health services, among many others.
As Vox reported, the United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world, even though this rate has been decreasing in recent years. In fact, the Pew Research Center said that, in the year 2016, 2.2 million people were locked up — either in jail or in prison — in the United States.
Criminal justice reform clearly represents a very significant issue that directly or indirectly affects millions of Americans. The list below provides a look at some of the recent criminal justice reform initiatives that various 2020 presidential candidates have supported. As you may notice, many of the candidates agree that changes are needed, though they vary somewhat in how they think these changes should be implemented.
Seth Moulton
Moulton, a Democratic representative from Massachusetts, doesn't appear to have a section of his campaign website dedicated to criminal justice reform, though he has been supportive of criminal justice reform initiatives in the past. For example, he has publicly advocated for the decriminalization of marijuana, often citing the disproportionate and unjust impact that marijuana arrests have on minorities, Marijuana Moment reported.
"I support legalization, but we do need to make sure it’s done right, and there are very legitimate concerns being brought up by the other side here," Moulton during an interview with WGBH’s Boston Public Radio in 2016. "But here’s the reality. Let’s not kid ourselves. People are using marijuana. They’re using it in America, they’re using it in Massachusetts, and we have an obligation to regulate it and make it as safe as possible."
In terms of other criminal justice reform issues, Moulton has indicated that he supports restoring Americans' voting rights when they are released from prison, but doesn't support allowing prisoners convicted of felonies to vote. "My position would be that people in prison don't vote, but when you get out, then absolutely you should have those rights restored," Moulton said at an April 2019 press gathering, per The Hill. "And we do have a problem in the United States with people who come out of prison and don't get their full rights."
Steve Bullock
Bullock, the Democratic governor of Montana, has had a somewhat mixed record on criminal justice reform while serving in his current role. For example, in 2017 he signed a package of 10 criminal justice reform bills in Montana, which were designed to improve the state's prison facilities as well as reduce the number of people who ultimately go to prison.
However, Bullock also received criticism, including from the American Civil Liberties Union, for renewing a contract for Montana's only for-profit prison, the CoreCivic Crossroads Correctional Center, back in July 2018. "The contract is an enormous step backward for criminal justice reform in Montana," the ACLU said at the time, per the Great Falls Tribune. The outlet also noted the governor cited budgetary savings plus a much shorter contract renewal (two years versus 10 years) as two of the drivers behind his decision.
Michael Bennet
Bennet, a Democratic senator from Colorado, has engaged in a host of criminal justice reform initiatives during his time in office. For example, Bennet's Senate website indicates that he advocated for 2017 legislation to help diminish the national rape kit backlog. The senator also supports the legalization of marijuana, his Senate website reveals.
Moreover, Bennet's website notes that he wants to work to reduce the disproportionately negative impact that the criminal justice system has on minorities. As the website describes:
Michael also supports efforts to reform our criminal justice system, which disproportionately affects people of color across the country, by reducing mandatory minimum sentences for low-level offenses and increasing resources for individuals reentering their communities.
Joe Biden
As the Washington Post reported, Joe Biden, a former senator and vice president, has a somewhat controversial criminal justice record. The paper noted that, as a senator, Biden helped pass several bills that increased the length of sentences for drug offenders, especially for drugs that were more frequently used by minorities. As the paper described, the passage of these bills helped contribute to a massive increase in incarceration in the United States, something that particularly impacted people of color.
Biden has suggested that his views on criminal justice have changed since the 1990s, when he advocated for the aforementioned legislation. As CNN noted in January 2019, the former vice president emphasized during a speech that he worked with President Obama to reduce sentencing disparities between crack and powder cocaine users. "It was a big mistake when it [the sentencing law] was made," he said, per CNN. "We thought, we were told by the experts, that crack you never go back, it was somehow fundamentally different. It's not different. But it's trapped an entire generation."
Bill Weld
Weld, a former Massachusetts governor, is the first Republican to announce his intention to challengeTrump for the party's 2020 nomination. While he was known for being "tough on crime" as governor, he has changed his views about criminal justice reform in recent years, WBUR reported. As Weld told the outlet:
I think the United States is undergoing a reexamination of that [the tough on crime mentality]. You’ll notice in Massachusetts we’ve stopped sending [drug offenders] into Framingham, which is incarceration; we send them somewhere else. And I’m totally behind that. And you would not have gotten that out of my mouth in the late '80s.
Boston.com also reported Weld said in a Feb. 15 speech that he hopes to take criminal justice reforms beyond what was accomplished by the First Step Act. "We should also move on to bail reform, funding for reentry programs, and other criminal justice reforms not reached by the recent First Step legislation," he said via the outlet.
Donald Trump
President Donald Trump has a somewhat mixed record on criminal justice reform.
Throughout his presidential campaign and early presidency, he advocated for some policies that generally lie counter to criminal justice reform. For example, as recently as October, Trump said he wanted Chicago police to use stop and frisk tactics to reduce crime in the city, the Washington Post reported. Stop and frisk involves police randomly stopping and searching people if they suspect them of having committed a crime — and the policy typically disproportionately targets people of color, the ACLU of Massachusetts reported. NPR also noted that, in the past, Trump has repeatedly referred to himself as "tough on crime."
That being said, as president, Trump has supported some criminal justice reform initiatives, NPR noted. For example, he supported and signed the First Step Act. He also famously pardoned Alice Marie Johnson, a woman who had been sentenced to life in prison for non-violent drug crimes, Business Insider reported.
Overall, taking a look at where the 2020 candidates stand on criminal justice reform hints at what types of policies they may pursue as president. As campaign season continues, you can expect these candidates to further flesh out their criminal justice reform platforms, so make sure to check their campaign websites to keep up-to-date with their latest initiatives.