MSNBC host hits Biden aide Symone Sanders for dodging question about Biden's shift from 1994 crime bill
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}MSNBC host Chris Hayes had a chuckle at the expense of Biden campaign senior advisor Symone Sanders for attempting to dodge a question regarding Joe Biden's past support for the 1994 crime bill.
Amid the ongoing debate over police reform following the death of George Floyd, critics of the presumptive Democratic nominee point to his signature legislation during his time as a senator that is widely pointed to as the reason for the high incarceration of black Americans.
During an interview on Thursday evening, Hayes grilled Sanders about whether Biden has shifted away from his staunch support for the crime bill.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}MSNBC PRODUCER SLAMMED FOR TWEET TAKING TRUMP'S STANCE ON CHOKEHOLDS OUT OF CONTEXT
"Joe Biden, of course, has unveiled a bunch of reform measures, some of them in line with the House Democratic package. Some people noted that Joe Biden is an interesting fit for this moment," Hayes said. "Joe Biden has a long career in public life. He has been a 'law and order' kind of politician at many points of his life. He was the architect, one of the architects of the crime bill. He has been endorsed by the police union in his home state of Delaware. He’s called for harsher penalties. ... I guess my question to you is ... has Joe Biden changed the way he views the American criminal justice system or policing or have the times changed? How do you see that trajectory?"
"Well, Chris, I really do not enjoy attempting to, you know, relitigate what was happening in the early ‘90s when I was like 3 years old," Sanders said, "but I think context is important here and --"
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Well, you work for Joe Biden. He was there," Hayes jokingly exclaimed.
Sanders when on to explain the "context" of the passing of the crime bill, noting the "rampant crime" that was taking place at the time but quickly shifted to the "pattern of practice" measure that stemmed from the crime bill that holds "rogue police departments accountable," which is a policy she said was upheld by the Obama-Biden administration but was rolled back under the Trump administrations by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions.