Obama commutes 61 prisoners’ sentences, dines with ex-convicts

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama commuted the sentences of 61 federal prisoners Wednesday and went to lunch with seven former inmates who were released after having their sentences shortened – examples, Obama said, of the importance of second chances.

The president’s latest commutations and his impromptu meeting with former drug offenders in Washington, D.C., were meant to draw attention to his proposal to overhaul the U.S. criminal justice system and reduce mandatory punishments for nonviolent criminals. That effort has stalled as Congress has focused on a Supreme Court vacancy and the 2016 elections.

“You’ve got people sitting around this table who are now attorneys themselves,” Obama said of his lunch companions. “This is an example of what we mean when we talk about second chances.”

White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters Wednesday he remains “cautiously optimistic” an overhaul can still happen during Obama’s presidency.

Obama said at a drug abuse summit Tuesday in Atlanta the U.S. should treat drug addiction as a disease instead of a crime, and emphasize treatment over incarceration.

“For too long we’ve seen the problem of drug abuse generally in our society through the lens of the criminal justice system,” Obama said.

The seven former prisoners who attended the lunch with Obama at Busboys & Poets restaurant in Washington, D.C., included some whose sentences were commuted by presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton. The restaurant’s owner, Andy Shallal, advocated for a law that forbids most employers from asking job applicants whether they have been arrested.