House sends criminal-justice bill to Trump

WASHINGTON — The House passed a wide-ranging criminal justice bill Thursday that will reduce some of the harshest sentences for federal drug offenders and boost prison rehabilitation programs, handing President Donald Trump a legislative victory amid the turmoil over how to avoid a partial government shutdown.

The bill addresses concerns that the nation’s war on drugs led to the imprisonment of too many Americans for nonviolent crimes. The nation’s federal prison population has soared by more than 700 percent since the 1980s.

The House passed the bill 358-36, sending it to Trump for his signature.

Passage of the legislation is an achievement for Trump, who had joined supporters in pushing for a Senate vote when the effort appeared to have stalled. It’s also a win for his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who championed the legislation and became a key go-between as lawmakers and advocacy groups negotiated a compromise.

“This is a great bi-partisan achievement for everybody,” Trump tweeted moments after the vote. “When both parties work together we can keep our Country safer. A wonderful thing for the U.S.A.!!”

The bill had a unique combination of support from evangelicals, fiscal conservatives and liberals, all agreeing that the nation’s prisons are warehousing too many nonviolent prisoners and that this is taking an excessive toll on families and taxpayers. Lawmakers had been working on the proposal since the Obama administration.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-wis., said, “As Americans, we are about lifting people up. There is no reason a person who wants to redeem themselves, work hard and contribute to their community should be deprived of that opportunity.”

The measure gives judges more discretion in sentencing some drug offenders and reduces some mandatoryminimum sentences. For example, it reduces the life sentence for some drug offenders with three convictions, or “three strikes,” to 25 years.