Trump reviewing criminal justice bill

WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump is leaning in favor of backing a measure that would overhaul U.S. sentencing laws -- a compromise drafted by the Senate that marks a significant change of the criminal justice system by easing some mandatory minimum sentences for drug-related and other crimes.

But Trump did not commit one way or the other on the pending legislation, which he was briefed on Tuesday afternoon by senior White House adviser Jared Kushner, his son-in-law who has taken on changing the criminal justice system as one of his core issues.

That meeting at the White House was described by two people with knowledge of it. One individual said Trump is a "soft yes" on the bill, but he signaled nonetheless that he wants more law enforcement groups to publicly support the measure.

"This is not a 100 percent done deal," according to the second person briefed on the short meeting. No lawmakers attended, but White House officials later briefed congressional leadership.

Kushner is pressing Trump to offer formal support of the bill this week, according to a White House official.

The criminal justice overhaul, scaled back from its initial ambitious Senate draft but vastly more comprehensive than legislation the House passed earlier this year, could be one of the most significant and bipartisan laws signed by Trump in his first two years in office.

Opponents of the push for overhaul also lost a high-ranking ally when Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who opposed any initiative to relax sentencing laws, resigned last week.

"I talked to the president last night," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a vocal supporter of the sentencing measure, said Tuesday evening. "I've never been more optimistic than I am now, but we're not there yet ... he seemed supportive last night."

The compromise criminal justice measure, which was hammered out in principle this summer, adds four provisions overhauling the sentencing system to a House-passed bill that focused on reducing prisoner recidivism and did not include the more controversial sentencing changes.

The new Senate package includes language that lowers mandatory minimum sentences for drug felonies, including reducing the "three-strike" penalty from life behind bars to 25 years. This provision would not be allowed to take place retroactively, a major concession from Democrats.

It also would include Senate language that retroactively applies the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010, which reduces the disparity in sentencing guidelines between crack and powder cocaine offenses. And it would reduce mandatory minimum sentences that go into effect when a firearm is used during a violent crime or drug offense. The latter also would not apply to people already sentenced for these crimes.

The agreement also lets judges take advantage of "safety valves" -- which allow them to issue sentences shorter than mandatory minimums for low-level crimes -- in more types of cases.

One new addition since the August negotiations is language that would bar prisoners who had been convicted of certain fentanyl offenses -- primarily those that involved five- and 10-year mandatory minimums -- from being able to receive credit for time served, according to two officials familiar with the discussions.

The addition is significant because Trump told Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., a close ally and an avowed opponent of the emerging criminal justice measure, that he opposes allowing fentanyl dealers out early from prison, and the tentative agreement could have done so.

Another section of the earlier measure could have allowed fentanyl dealers to earn time credits.

Those revisions prompted the powerful Fraternal Order of Police to endorse the compromise, calling it a bill that will "make our streets and neighborhoods safer," better protect police officers and "improve the ability of our criminal justice system to effectively rehabilitate offenders."

Further giving advocates hope, the National Sheriffs Association -- which has opposed previous versions of the sentencing measure -- has been quiet on the compromise so far.

In the White House meeting Tuesday, Trump was pleased that so many different law enforcement groups had signed on to support it, according to one of the people briefed on the meeting. But he has reservations because many conservative lawmakers remain opposed, advisers said.

"He is really concerned he's going to be seen as soft on crime," the person said. "He really cares that law enforcement supports him politically."

Several people involved in the negotiations cautioned Tuesday that the emerging agreement needs an explicit endorsement from Trump to proceed.

A Section on 11/14/2018

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