A bipartisan sentencing reform package is a threat to minorities who could be on “the receiving end” of violence caused by inmates who might obtain an early release under the terms of the legislation, according to law-and-order Republicans and their law enforcement allies.

“My best judgment after many, many years in law enforcement is that bottom on crime rates has been reached and the rise we’re beginning to see is part of a long-term trend, not an aberration, and the last thing we need to do is a major reduction in penalties,” Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., told reporters Wednesday.