Politicians say whatever they’re going to say, but there are a lot of things they tend not to say. One thing they almost never say is that we’re locking up too many people in this country. So, I welcome Hillary Clinton’s rhetoric even if I will definitely be taking a “wait and see” attitude.
Hillary Rodham Clinton focused her presidential campaign Wednesday on the unrest in Baltimore, vowing to work to upend the criminal justice system by ending the “era of mass incarceration” and equipping every police officer on the street with a body camera.
Her speech at Columbia University in New York City marked the unveiling of Clinton’s first major policy proposal as a presidential hopeful, coming as candidates are under pressure to confront racial disparities in the criminal justice system highlighted by the violence in Baltimore.
“What we have seen in Baltimore should, and I think does, tear at our soul,” Clinton said. “The patterns have become unmistakable and undeniable. … We have to come to terms with some hard truths about race and justice in America.”
I am pretty cynical, especially about both Clintons, but I do not totally dismiss the value of Hillary’s listening tours.
Clinton’s plan also stems from the “listening tour” she has been on since launching her campaign this month. In round-table meetings with residents in the early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire, the issue of drug abusers whose troubles were compounded by mental health problems played prominently.
“Our prisons and our jails are now our mental health institutions,” Clinton said. “I was somewhat surprised in both Iowa and New Hampshire to be asked so many questions about mental health.”
I don’t blame Hillary for living in a bubble and I’m willing to give her credit for making a concerted effort to get outside of it and get a taste of what’s really going on in this country. I’ve been writing about the opioid problem for a while now from a variety of angles, and one of the most important is treatment. Another, related, issue that’s important is how we treat people who commit crimes in the pursuit of feeding their addictions.
These problems are only a part of what is ailing Baltimore, our cities generally, and the nation, but they’re usually ignored.
