(11)   How would you work to build a bipartisan consensus to move the broadest possible justice reform package across the finish line? (Please limit to 250 words)

Vice President Joe Biden

I am proud that throughout my public service I have pushed for bipartisan support on legislation that is of utmost importance to the American people, ranging from the Violence Against Women Act to the Recovery Act to the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010. I know how to do this. And, I will bring all the stakeholders to the table to get criminal justice reform done.

As president, I will build consensus for and work to enact evidence-based criminal justice reforms. I’ll start by calling for the immediate passage of Congressman Bobby Scott’s bipartisan SAFE Justice Act, an evidence-based, comprehensive bill to reform our criminal justice system “from front-end sentencing reform to back-end release policies.” I will also create a $20 billion competitive grant program, inspired by a Brennan Center proposal, to spur states to focus on prevention and reducing incarcerated populations. I will expand the Justice Department’s use of pattern-or-practice investigations and consent decrees to address unlawful policing. I will decriminalize the use of cannabis and automatically expunge all prior cannabis use convictions and end incarceration for drug use alone and instead divert individuals to drug courts and treatment. I will stop corporations from profiteering off of incarceration. And, I will eliminate existing barriers (such as disenfranchisement, preventing access to SNAP, Pell grants, and housing support) preventing formerly incarcerated individuals from fully participating in society. These are just a few of the policies I have put forward in my comprehensive criminal justice reform plan, available at joebiden.com/justice.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg

I believe strongly that there is a bipartisan consensus for action on this issue. The First Step Act was a good show of faith, with many Republicans voting for reform. Many state legislatures dominated by Republicans have taken impressive action in recent years to improve public defense – including with so-called “open-file” laws – and have worked to reduce probation revocation and technical violations of probation and parole. I am confident we can build a coalition in Congress to pass enacting legislation and fund $22.5 billion over 10 years to power state reforms – and approve withholding of existing funds from states that fail to reform. We will then use the new reform hub at DOJ to incentivize states in some cases and press others to take bipartisan action with funding incentives, the specter of civil rights investigations, and the power of the presidential pulpit to expose injustice around the country.

Senator Bernie Sanders

 Bernie understands that criminal justice reform is broadly popular with the American people of all political parties. It is not a radical idea to say that as President, Bernie will work to enact the will of the people. Bernie has worked across the aisle to pass landmark Veterans Administration legislation and to pass the first War Powers Resolution in the history of the law. He will work across the aisle to pass criminal justice reform as well. As President, Bernie will not only be the Commander in Chief, he will be the Organizer in Chief. Bernie will rally the American people around a popular, transformative agenda and ensure members of Congress are being held accountable to their constituents.

Senator Elizabeth Warren

 To get things done in Washington, we have to address the corruption that prevents proposals that are popular with the American people from gaining any traction on Capitol Hill. That’s why I’ve proposed the biggest anti-corruption plan since Watergate. It is an aggressive set of reforms that would fundamentally change the way Washington does business – including restoring faith that ordinary people can get a fair shake in our criminal justice system. My plan padlocks the revolving door between big business and government and ends lobbying as we know it, taking power in Washington away from the wealthy and well-connected and putting it in the hands of the American people. It also bans lobbyists from donating to or fundraising for political candidates and prohibits elected officials and senior agency officials from owning or trading any company stocks while in office – because the corporations that profit from mass incarceration should not get a veto over all of the work that we need to do.