Trump hits Biden for 1994 crime bill support

President Trump called out former Vice President Joe Biden in a set of tweets Monday for his support of the 1994 crime bill.

“Super Predator was the term associated with the 1994 Crime Bill that Sleepy Joe Biden was so heavily involved in passing,” Trump tweeted.

“That was a dark period in American History, but has Sleepy Joe apologized? No!”

….Super Predator was the term associated with the 1994 Crime Bill that Sleepy Joe Biden was so heavily involved in passing. That was a dark period in American History, but has Sleepy Joe apologized? No!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 27, 2019

Biden, who is among the 2020 presidential hopefuls but at the time was a senator from Delaware, was instrumental in pushing for the crime bill, which critics have said led to a spike in incarceration, particularly among African Americans.

{mosads}The legislation offered states financial incentives to impose stricter sentencing laws and enacted a three-strikes rule that imposed a mandatory life sentence if a person with two or more prior convictions was found guilty of a violent crime.

The former vice president has defended his role in the legislation saying its gun control language, including an assault weapons ban, helped “beat the NRA,” referring to the National Rifle Association, and denying its association with the resulting increase in incarceration.

Biden has been blasted for the bill by two of his fellow 2020 Democratic hopefuls, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.

In a follow-up tweet, Trump said African Americans “will not be able” to vote for candidates who supported the 1994 bill. Trump has signed criminal justice reforms that advocates say benefit the African American community, though his past comments about issues ranging from the Central Park Five to black athletes kneeling during the national anthem have drawn accusations of racism. Trump’s approval rating among black voters has never cleared 20 percent, according to Gallup polling.

Anyone associated with the 1994 Crime Bill will not have a chance of being elected. In particular, African Americans will not be able to vote for you. I, on the other hand, was responsible for Criminal Justice Reform, which had tremendous support, & helped fix the bad 1994 Bill!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 27, 2019