“They’ve made mistakes. But with a little help they can get on the right path”, Obama said at the Integrity House drug treatment center.
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Remember, President Obama was the first sitting president ever to visit a US prison over the summer, and during his stop, he spoke to inmates about his interest in the policy. Obama’s latest effort follows his historic visit to El Reno Federal Correctional Institution, where he discussed criminal justice reform with a group of non-violent drug offenders.
With just slightly more than a year left in his second term in office, President Obama says he would like the current presidential candidates to focus more on explaining the issues. Advocates argue that those formerly in prison should be allowed to prove their qualifications for a job instead of being eliminated early in the process due to their criminal background.
“Everyone has a role to play”, he added, “from businesses that are hiring ex-offenders to philanthropies that are supporting education and training programs”. During his speech he pointed out that nearly 70 million Americans have a criminal record of a few sort, and that “a lot of time that record disqualifies you from being a full participant in our society even if you’ve fully paid your debt to society”.
He also commended Congress for advancing the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act, which passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee last month.
Without new laws, the moves Obama can take are more limited.
The steps Obama announced Monday were all relatively modest. The order includes a commitment to “ban the box”, essentially stopping federal agencies from asking job applicants about their criminal history with a box that flags them as ex-cons.
“I believe Congress should pass legislation that builds on today’s announcement”.
That checked box can also reduce an employer’s interest in an applicant by about 50 percent, NBC News reported. HUD is also spending $1.7 million on a program that will aid public-housing residents under 24 years of age in expunging and sealing their records.
CARLOS BARRIA/REUTERS Before his public remarks, Obama participated in a closed-press roundtable at the Rutgers-Newark School of Criminal Justice on continuing education for formerly incarcerated people. “Because it’s not about politics”. No longer bound by union contracts, the department has emphasized community policing. When California, the nation’s biggest state, is just one of 11 states to spend more on prison than on college, we have a big problem.
“The president always takes the opportunity to think the worst of the men and women in uniform”, Christie told reporters.
The White House accused Christie of trying to use the issue to boost his visibility.
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“Governor Christie’s comments in this regard have been particularly irresponsible, though not surprising for somebody whose poll numbers are closer to an asterisk than they are double digits”.
