Pardon Me

Pardon Me

By Expotera
June 26, 2018

With all of the very real animosity, hostility, as well as very real,
"Incivility" that it now very openly taking place over here in the
United States of America one could almost forget that it was only a
couple of weeks ago that President Donald Trump and North Korean
Leader Kim Jong Un were sitting down and making, "Peace" over in
Singapore, after almost 70 years of being at, "War" and it was also
only a few weeks ago when President Trump asked a group of NFL
players to submit, "Pardon Recommendations" for all of the people
they felt had been treated unfairly by the criminal justice system.

The Players, some of whom have been kneeling and/or raising a fist
during the, "National Anthem" to protest racial inequality and police
brutality in America had a somewhat surprising response which was
published in the New York Times.

Philadelphia Eagles Safety Malcolm Jenkins, San Francisco 49ers
Receiver Anquan Boldin, New Orleans Saints Tight End Ben Watson,
and Seattle Seahawks Receiver Doug Baldwin, co-authored an op-ed
in the New York Times, calling nonviolent drug offender
incarceration a, “Systemic Problem.”

The Players requested that President Trump issue a,
"Blanket Pardon" for nonviolent drug offenders.

“President Trump could help,” they wrote. “He could use his
powers, including the clemency power, to make a real dent in
the federal prison population.”

President Trump had asked the Players to submit some,
"Names" to be considered for pardons.

But the Players felt that simply pardoning a few, "Individuals"
wouldn’t solve the problem.

“A handful of pardons will not address the sort of systemic injustice
that NFL Players have been protesting” the op-ed read.

“These are problems that our government has created many
of which occur at the local level. If President Trump thinks
he can end these injustices if we deliver him a few names,
he hasn’t been listening to us.”

The Players commended President Trump for pardoning,
"Alice Johnson" a 63-year-old African American woman
who was serving a life sentence for a nonviolent drug
conviction, but asked for a more comprehensive solution.

Here’s what they are now asking for:

● A blanket pardon for nonviolent drug offenders who have already
served long sentences. “Imagine how many more Alice Johnson's
the President could pardon if he treated the issue like the systemic
problem it is, rather than asking professional football players for
a few cases.”

● The release of any drug offender over the age of 60 whose
conviction isn’t recent. “There is also a systemic problem in
federal prison involving the elderly, who by next year will make
up 28 percent of the federal prison population. Releasing these
prisoners would pose little to no risk to society.”

● Eliminate life without parole for nonviolent offenses. “Currently
more than half of those sentenced to die in federal prison are there
for nonviolent offenses, and 30 percent of people sentenced to life
(or de facto life) are there for nonviolent drug crimes.”

Inclosing this initial public interaction between President Trump
and the NFL Players represents the first positive and potentially
productive result in this very emotional and ongoing controversy
over the, "Player Protests" along with who is or who is not going
to the, "White House" and/or finger-pointing about who does or
does not love the, "Country" as well, the two sides now have the
chance to address some very, very real, "Issues" here, and we as,
"Americans" can only hope this process will continue from here.