Democrats “want to get rid of the prison system. They want to — free federal housing for former inmates, so you get all of this free housing. They want to create housing for inmates; they want to do more for inmates than they do for you.”
— President Trump, in remarks to a tele-rally in Nevada, Aug. 31
Joe Biden “wants prisons closed, and [to] provide free federal housing for former inmates.”
— Trump, in remarks to a tele-rally in North Carolina, Aug. 11
This claim has been popping up in the president’s stump speech recently, but, once again, Trump is mischaracterizing Biden’s positions with wild exaggerations.
Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee and former vice president, says he would end the federal government’s use of private prisons and increase funding for halfway houses and transitional programs for former prisoners.
What Trump is describing — an emptying of prisons and free housing for all former inmates — is a flat-out false rendition of Biden’s plan, going far beyond the usual license politicians take on the campaign trail. Continue reading.