When Congress returns from recess early next week, lawmakers will face a bevy of partisan-infused battles on issues such as the Iran nuclear deal, Planned Parenthood, and government funding.
But along with the bickering, there will also likely be harmony—and action—on an issue uniting both sides of the aisle and even President Obama: criminal justice reform.
Soon after lawmakers return to Washington, D.C., on Sept. 8, a bipartisan group of members on the Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to announce a deal meant to relieve the overcrowded federal prison population.
The bill, which is still being written and near completion—according to Beth Levine, a spokeswoman for Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley—would give judges more discretion in sentencing offenders of certain nonviolent drug crimes and let well-behaved inmates earn time off their prison terms.
