There’s absolutely no doubt we have to reduce this prison population footprint we have in this country. I’m not sure we should release current prisoners who have been hardened by the system, but we need to stop incarcerating new prisoners on petty crimes and drug abuse. Once these people are in the system, they become hardened and commit real crimes once they’re out. A huge majority of inmates now are there for drug offenses. It’s time to start treating this as a health issue, not an incarceration one. With our prison system setup as it is, there’s a real incentive to keep the population high, and it also continues to lead to even more militarization of our police forces. It’s not what we are about here.
At least it shouldn’t be...
Should have been "It's not who we are."
Damn spell check.