Something magical is happening in Washington: It’s working.
Amid all the hysteria of the midterms, Russia, a Supreme Court nomination and general chaos, legislators from different parties have come together to push for reform of something that was seen by many as being broken.
And we have our senator, John Cornyn, to thank for some of that.
He is one of the senators spearheading First Step Act, a prison reform bill that passed through the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this year.
After major revisions, which were based on some of Cornyn’s previous reform efforts, the bill would reduce mandatory sentencing for non-violent drug offenses and change the punishment for the three strikes policy down to 25 years. Currently, that punishment sits at life.
It would also allow judges to use more discretion to avoid mandatory sentencing.
Prison reform is something that has been needed for a long time, and mandatory sentences have sent many people to prison with severe sentences that might only have been levied because the judge’s hands were tied by law.
There is more to the bill, but basically it is aimed at cleaning up some of the mess the justice system has become over the years.
While that is admirable, what’s interesting is how things are coming together.
The sudden attention being placed on this bill was ignited by President Donald Trump after he told reporters he would put his support the legislation.
The lead sponsor of the Senate bill is Cornyn, but senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) have been pursuing changes for several years, and with the support of the president, it looks like it might have a spark of life still in it.
There are still hurdles. In order to be voted on, the legislation will need to be rushed through, requiring consent from senators to skip procedural hurdles. Congress will leave Washington for the year Dec. 14, and it will have new members when both chambers return in January.
“It’s going to take, basically, consent by 100 senators to proceed in some expedited fashion,” Cornyn told The Hill.
“Today’s announcement shows that true bipartisanship is possible and maybe it will be thriving,” Trump told reporters Wednesday. “When Republicans and Democrats talk, debate and seek common ground, we can achieve breakthroughs that move our country forward and deliver for our citizens.”
And the president is right. In an era of hyper-partisanship, the country needs to stop bickering and find a way to come together in order to take care of the needs of its people, leaving petty fights about wedge issues and posturing for political gain on the sidelines.
After all, that’s what they are elected to do: write and pass bills, not win points for their next election.
It is also promising to see the president using the power of the office to push Congress when it is catching its breath from the midterms. Every day, people are affected by sentencing rules, and another day going by with what are seen as unfair laws by both sides is not justified.
Maybe this is the exception to the rule and there is another political blunder that will hog the headlines for the next few weeks, but to see the wheels of policy turning provides a glimmer of hope.
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This editorial was written by Alec Woolsey, assistant managing editor for The Facts.