Sen. Tom Cotton is putting his relationship with President Donald Trump to the test in his battle to defeat White House-led prison sentencing reform, Politico reported.
The reform measures have been a pet issue of Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump and have garnered the support of other Republican senators. Cotton, however, sees it as a jailbreak.
"I can’t imagine the president wants to reduce mandatory minimum sentences for drug dealers," Cotton, R-Ark., told Politico. "I believe Sen. (Mitch) McConnell shares my view that we should not let serious felons out of jail and we should not shorten the sentences for drug dealers."
Cotton has been a staunch ally of Trump's over immigration issues, and the big question is whether the president will fall on his side or that of his daughter and Kushner, both senior White House advisers.
Further, Trump told Republican senators earlier in the month that he's "positively inclined" to sign a measure that reaches his desk.
Trump is "for prison reform, I’m for prison reform," Cotton told Politico. "What I don’t support is sentencing reductions under the guise of prison reforms, and that’s unfortunately what many senators are moving towards."
Cotton is aligned with Attorney General Jeff Sessions, law enforcement and state prosecutors on the issue.
"We think what he’s doing is terrific. Sen. Cotton recognizes that it’s a very flawed bill," Larry Leiser, president of the National Association of Assistant U.S. Attorneys, told Politico. "We’re hopeful the president won’t [endorse it]."
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