Republicans Backing Holder Spotlight Crime Policy Shift
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Once a U.S. political issue central to Republican campaign attacks against Democrats, the push to be “tough on crime” has transformed -- from statehouses to Washington -- into being “smart on crime.”
The shift -- driven by economic and social costs -- has created unlikely political allies, with Democrats and President Barack Obama’s administration lining up with Republicans. Both sides are searching for alternatives to a criminal sentencing system that has the U.S. prisons housing 1.5 million inmates.