With the economy going to hell, both presidential candidates have paid little attention to the crime issue. But their records provide some insights.
By Solomon Moore New York Times CHICAGO – As an Illinois legislator for seven years, Senator Barack Obama sponsored more than 100 bills on crime, corrections and the death penalty, making criminal justice one of his top priorities as a state lawmaker.In his nearly three decades in Washington, Senator John McCain has had a reputation for taking strong law-and-order stances.
But compared with many past presidential elections, Mr. Obama and Mr. McCain have paid little attention to issues of criminal justice as they compete for the White House.
The change is a reflection, experts say, of 15 years of declining crime rates, an electorate less anxious about public safety and the fact that crime and law enforcement issues are less partisan than they used to be.
“The political climate has shifted,” said Marc Mauer, executive director of the Sentencing Project, a nonprofit organization for criminal justice reform. “Democrats and Republicans both embrace a more evidence-based approach to public safety that looks at programs and policies that work.”
For Full Story Read ticklethewire Columnist James G. Huse Jr. On Crime And The Presidential Race
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