A few interesting accounts of Joe Biden on criminal justice

In the criminal justice arena, I have come to think of Joe Biden as a Zelig-like figure: out of a desire to fit in politically, Biden seems to be inclined to take on the criminal justice character of the era. For that reason, I expect he would prove to be somewhat reform-minded (though still pretty mainstream) were he to become President in 2021.  My framing and thinking here is reinforced by a number of new press articles on Biden and criminal justice:

From the AP, "Joe Biden says questions about 1994 crime bill are ‘legitimate’"

From CNN, "Biden repeatedly pushed bill in Senate that critics said would have made investigating police officers for misconduct more difficult"

From NPR, "Joe Biden Has Come A Long Way On Criminal Justice Reform. Progressives Want More"

From Slate, "The Protests Haven’t Changed Joe Biden Yet. They Will Change the Democratic Party."

While there are a lot of interesting elements to these pieces, I especially liked this portion of the NPR piece:

Chiraag Bains, who worked in the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division during the Obama administration [and who] Bernie Sanders tapped to co-chair the criminal justice reform committee the Sanders and Biden campaigns set up at the end of their primary contest [wants more].  "It's not enough to speak to people's pain and utter the right words," said Bains, who emphasized he was speaking for himself, not the task force.

Bains said Biden's statements and speeches have been the right start and have been well-received — especially when contrasted to the president. "But we need a specific agenda and it needs to be bold," he said. "I do see that the vice president is moving that direction. I just think we need to do more."  Bains wants Biden to expand on already-announced proposals on ending mandatory-minimum prison sentences and ramping up the use of clemency.  He's also pushing for the restoration of federal parole and the legalization of marijuana, among other policies.

More clemency, eliminate mandatory minimums, restore federal parole and legalize marijuana is a pretty good accounting of my priority wish list for federal criminal justice reform.  If Biden were to champion all these reforms in the months ahead, I would need a better adjective for him than Zelig-like.