Cory Booker, Rand Paul push to overhaul criminal justice system
Source: By Jonathan D. Salant | NJ Advance Media NJ.com
on March 09, 2015 at 1:48 PM, updated March 09, 2015 at 2:14 PM
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Cory Booker and Rand Paul re-introduced legislation today designed to help keep nonviolent offenders out of prison and avoid saddling them with permanent criminal records.
"Our broken criminal justice system is a shameful contradiction to our founding principles that we are a nation of liberty and justice for all," Booker (D-N.J.) said in a statement announcing the legislation.
The bill, which also was introduced in the last Congress, is the product of an unusual partnership between Booker, a liberal Democrat from New Jersey, and Paul, a tea party favorite from Kentucky and potential 2016 Republican presidential candidate.
Called the REDEEM Act, the Booker-Paul bill would give incentives to states to keep teenagers under 18 out of adult courts, seal criminal records of youngsters who commit nonviolent crimes before age 15, offer a way for adults convicted of nonviolent crimes to seal their records, and allow certain low-level drug offenders to continue to receive certain federal support such as food stamps.
Read more: http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/03/booker_and_paul_re-introduce_legislation_to_overha.html
= new reply since forum marked as read
"Booker says he plans to try to make friends. "You should always lead with love, lead with kindness, and just be good and decent to people. I'm not one of those firebrands that throws Molotov cocktails at people and the like," he said when asked if he expected a warm reception from possible Senate colleagues. And if not? Well, he says that confrontational junior senators are making big marks nowadays. "Look at Rand Paul," he said. "Ted Cruz.""
http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a24238/cory-booker-is-so-very-awesome/
barf 
and in this case it makes no sense. HRC has the support of about 75% of the Democratic party including the most liberal 5% of the party. AAR, Should a private citizen be available 24/7 to answer questions? She's not running until she runs. 
I like Sanders and Warren, but Warren isn't running and Bernie can't win in red or purple states. To push the party further to the left we need real majorities in both Congress and the Presidency. Only then will the party move left. Nominating unelectable folks won't help.
You are also wrong about O'Malley, he is a decent option with a real record of liberal successes. Reasons here:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6322407
and here:
http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2014/12/martin-omalley-longshot-presidential-candidate-and-real-climate-hawk
Frederick Clarkson printable version print page Bookmark and Share
Mon Aug 12, 2013 at 02:25:43 PM EST
In the early days of Pat Robertson's Christian Coalition, Ralph Reed advocated stealth Christian Right candidates run in GOP primaries against moderates for offices at all levels, and to also conceal their true agenda in general elections against Democrats.
The creeping religious rightism in the Democratic Party has taken many forms over the years, and the list is long. But we need look no farther than the pandering to and promotion of false moderates like Rick Warren and Samuel Rodriguez, and the adoption by some of the ideas and even the phrasings of the Religious Right on such things as "secularism" and "abortion reduction"
to get a sense that there is an underlying trend to which these are more the rule than the exceptions. In the past few years, we have also seen stealth Religious Right candidates in the Democratic Party, for example in Hawaii and Jacksonville, Florida. Most recently, stealth Christian Rightist Max Myers is currently running as a progressive for the Democratic nomination for governor of Pennsylvania.
Now veteran journalist Susie Madrack, writing at Crooks & Liars has an important discussion of the rightwing involvements -- including the Religious Right -- of Newark mayor and leading contender for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate from New Jersey, Cory Booker. Excerpts
http://www.talk2action.org/story/2013/8/12/142543/436
I think he's a stealth candidate and has more in common with Paul than we know. I Don't automatically assume he's who I'd like him to be or on the same page as myself.
who could have thought? 
Response to proverbialwisdom (Original post)
Most Americans live in Purple America, not Red or Blue America
By John Sides
November 12, 2013
...In terms of the most important driver of political choices — partisanship — most of us live in a purple America, not a red or blue America.
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Here is a map of the 2012 presidential vote at the county level by the University of Michigan’s Mark Newman:
[center]
[/center]
...Once you take into account population and this more purple mix, you get a U.S. map that looks like this:
[center]
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Neither party can indefinitely promote policies the public opposes in a democracy.
