October, 30 2008, 12:00am EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Margaret Dooley-Sammuli (213) 291-4190 or Tommy McDonald (510) 229-5215
CA Prison System a Bipartisan Failure, as 5 Governors Show
Opposing Solutions to a Crisis They Created
WASHINGTON
The current and former governors of California today announced their opposition to Proposition 5, the Nonviolent Offender Rehabilitation Act, just days before the election and two weeks before a federal court trial that is expected to result in a federal takeover of the state prison system.
Prop. 5 supporters say the measure is the last real hope for a solution to the prison crisis before the state loses control of the prisons.
Margaret Dooley-Sammuli, deputy campaign manager for Yes on 5, said, "This is disgraceful. These governors, in league with the prison guards' union, got California into this prison overcrowding crisis. Now here they come to stand in the way of good reform one more time."
"We believe that the voters recognize that the prisons are a bipartisan failure, and they will support Proposition 5 to fix the problem these men created. Make no mistake," Dooley-Sammuli said, "These governors are saying it is better for the federal courts to take over our prisons than to let voters solve the problem."
The Yes on 5 campaign scored each of the governors for overseeing massive growth in the prison population and annual spending during their tenures, worsening California's budget problems. The annual cost of prisons has grown from $4 billion in 2000 to $10 billion today.
- Gov. Schwarzenegger has failed to reform the prison system while the federal courts are on the verge of taking it over; he has expressly refused the advice in Gov. Deukmejian's report to him on how to reform prisons.
- Gray Davis took $3 million in campaign contributions from the prison guards' union, a major reason he was recalled in 2003, and he shut down rehabilitation programs in prisons.
- Like Gray Davis, Jerry Brown is already cozying up to the prison guards - he has been endorsed for governor (2010) by guards' union and is currently benefiting from $800,000 of CCPOA-donated TV time promoting himself.
- Pete Wilson also took big-time campaign cash from the prison guards, then oversaw the greatest expansion of the prison system in history. Wilson promoted the "three strikes" law both to get himself re-elected and to fill those prisons up.
Since the late 1980s, the prison population increased by 75% to over 170,000 - nearly three times faster than the general adult population. In the 1990s, California built 21 new prisons and just one university. The state now spends about the same amount annually on prisons and higher education. Prison spending is projected to reach $15 billion by 2011.
According to the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO), Prop. 5 will cut prison construction costs by at least $2.5 billion. With $2.5 billion, the state could fund:
* 37,500 elementary schoolteacher salaries
* Healthcare for 2 million California children without health insurance
* Nursing home care for nearly 95,000 elderly persons on Medi-Cal
* Funding equal to 250% of all state firefighting efforts
The Drug Policy Alliance is the nation's leading organization promoting drug policies grounded in science, compassion, health and human rights.
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A trio of U.S. senators on Friday introduced what's being billed as first-of-its-kind legislation sponsors say will "take on the greed of the food and beverage industry and address the growing diabetes and obesity epidemics" with a federal ban on junk food ads targeting children.
The Childhood Diabetes Reduction Act—introduced by Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), and Peter Welch (D-Vt.)—would also require warning labels "on sugar-sweetened foods and beverages; foods and beverages containing non-sugar sweeteners; ultra-processed foods; and foods high in nutrients of concern, such as added sugar, saturated fat, or sodium."
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As the senators noted:
Today, more than 35 million Americans are struggling with type 2 diabetes—90% of whom are overweight or obese. These crises go hand-in-hand and children are severely impacted. Today, 1 out of 5 five kids are living with obesity. A serious illness unto itself, diabetes is also a contributing factor to heart disease, stroke, amputations, blindness, and kidney failure. Unless the U.S. dramatically changes course, these numbers will continue to grow exponentially.
The impact on the economy is enormous: Last year, the total cost of diabetes exceeded $400 billion, approximately 10% of overall U.S. healthcare expenditures.
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According to Seitz:
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But it's unclear what fines might be imposed on more than a dozen hospitals that the Biden administration says failed to properly treat pregnant patients in 2022.
It can take years for fines to be levied in these cases. The Health and Human Services agency, which enforces the law, declined to share if the hospitals have been referred to the agency's Office of Inspector General for penalties.
Responding to the reporting on social media, journalist Jane Mayer declared, "This is barbaric."
Texas Poor People's Campaign said that women in the state "are being left to die in ER waiting rooms. We cannot let this policy violence against women continue. Please join us as we mobilize voters for the '24 election."
Going into November, abortion has been a key issue at the state and federal level. Supporters of reproductive freedom are working to advance various ballot measures while Democratic President Joe Biden's campaign has highlighted his support for abortion rights and the presumptive Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump, has bragged about his role in reversing Roe—he appointed three of the six justices behind the majority opinion.
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