Competing visions for criminal justice reform may prevent the Senate from taking any action on one of President Trump’s domestic policy initiatives. The lack of movement isn’t out of any significant opposition to the effort. Instead, the gridlock comes from whether to include modest sentencing reforms backed by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill.
Grassley is a relatively new convert to the cause of criminal justice reform. In February 2015, he made a floor speech against legislation, the Smarter Sentencing Act, sponsored by Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, that would cut mandatory minimums in half for low-level, nonviolent offenders. Supporters of sentencing reform put pressure on Grassley, who eventually got on board with a bipartisan bill, the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act.
