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Sessions Inanely Blocks Recidivism Bill

January 21, 2008

Thumbnail image for JailCell2.jpgRecently, you may have seen that Sen. Jeff Sessions held up a prisoner rehab bill in the US Senate.  The bill, which would have provided "grants that can go toward helping the recently incarcerated find employment, housing, substance abuse treatment and other assistance", passed the house by a huge bi-partisan margin.   

Sessions claims "the proposal increases spending on grants for state and local governments from $16 million to $55 million... and argued that some of those programs have not been fully evaluated and may duplicate existing programs.

But Sessions' excuse to block the bill is weak and hypocritical, especially when you consider the broad bi-partisan support for this bill, and how Republican's like Sessions have almost doubled the national deficit from five to nearly 10 trillion dollars in just eight years! 

Sen. Sessions, the war in Iraq is costing us five or six hundred billion dollars a year, you insist that we should give your rich buddies a nice tax break while the economy is tanking and working families are struggling, and now you suggest an increase of merely $40 millions dollars to keep people from going back to prison is a bad idea? 

You really have no idea how poorly you represent our state.  It's just too bad that voters in Alabama haven't woken up to this obvious fact.

By
bwalden
on January 21, 2008 8:19 PM | | Comments (2)
Comments
When is he up for reelection? I'll campaign like crazy for whomever runs against him.

Posted by: Donna on February 1, 2008 5:15 PM

AS A MOTHER OF AN ALABAMA INMATE, I AM LEARNING FIRST HAND HOW CRITICAL IT IS TO HAVE PROGRAMS FOR INMATES IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO LEAVE PRISON AND NOT RETURN. I GET EXTREMELY AGGRAVATED WITH PEOPLE WHO THINK THE INMATES HAVE IT MADE!! I NOT ONLY SUPPORT MY SON BY SENDING HIM MONEY TO BUY SHOES AND SUPPLIES HE NEEDS, BUT ALSO, I PAY TAXES TO SUPPORT THE PRISONS ALSO. THERE DEFINITELY NEEDS TO BE MORE HALF-WAY HOUSES AND DRUG AND ALCHOHOL REHAB AVAILABLE FOR INMATES LEAVING PRISONS. I KNOW THERE WILL ALWAYS BE INMATES WHO CANNOT REFORM NO MATTER WHAT IS AVAILABLE, DUE TO PRISON BEING THE ONLY LIFE STYLE THEY KNOW. MY SON IS NOT ONE OF THEM. HE IS FRUSTRATED WITH NOT BEING ABLE TO HAVE CLASSES AVAILABLE THAT WILL HELP HIM WHILE IN PRISON. HE SEEMS TO THINK THE STATE OF ALABAMA DOESN'T WANT THE INMATES TO LEAVE FOR GOOD. I AM BEGINNING TO THINK THAT WAY ALSO. DUE TO THE HIGH COST OF FUNDING THIS "UNWARRANTED WAR FOR OIL", IT MAKES ME ANGRY THAT THE REPUBILCANS SEEM TO THINK THE DEMOCRATS ARE TERRIBLE, TO WANT TO ACTUALLY HELP THE POOR AND ELDERLY PEOPLE OF ALABAMA. I THINK SENATOR SESSIONS, YOU COULD BE ABOVE THE PARTY'S IDEAS REGARDING FUNDING FOR PRISONS.

Posted by: JERI on February 2, 2008 2:24 PM

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