In a letter sent today to Congress, MCC U.S., Mennonite Church USA and 10 other U.S. Christian denominations and agencies affirmed “our strong support for the right to make decisions about the stewardship of our financial resources.” The letter continues: We are heartened by the introduction of H.Res. 496 (“Affirming that all Americans have the…
This week, Congress and President Donald Trump has shown solidarity by passing The First Step Act, a bipartisan criminal justice bill that will provide sentencing and prison reforms. The First Step Act will curb several mandatory minimums for low-level drug crimes, providing judges with more discretion over individual cases. The bill also aims to eliminate…
Read in Spanish Congress delays decision on border wall funding With a continuing resolution set to expire on December 22, it looks as though Congress will pass another short-term spending bill through February 8 with no additional funding for border walls. President Trump is still calling for $5 billion for additional walls (about 200 miles) but now says he may look to…
Read in Spanish Spending bills Congress has not yet approved a funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), so it will likely pass a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the agency funded through December 7. As of this writing, the CR does not include additional funds for border security or immigration enforcement. However,…
Recently at a small group gathering, a friend asked how we were regulating our media intake. “Some days I can’t handle hearing more bad news, but I know it is a privilege to be uninformed,” she commented. We agreed: we are weary with hearing what’s wrong with our world and weary with feeling powerless to…
From the March-April 1979 Memo: The United States has had two traditions in immigration policy. One tradition welcomes the stranger, holding out the promise of a better, richer life in America…The second notable tradition has been one that in times of crisis uses the foreign-born as a scapegoat for unsolved social problems in the U.S.
From the July- Aug 1990 Memo: The U.S. has the 3rd highest incarceration rate in the world, following only the Soviet Union and South Africa. The state and federal prison population has nearly doubled since 1981 reaching 673,565 incarcerated individuals as of June 1989. The sharp rise in the cost of maintaining such a large…
MCC Washington Memo 