This is, of course, an extraordinarily silly idea. We have much more secure and intimidating and inhuman federal prison facilities. This is “I want to emphasize tough on crime and the only scary prison I can remember in my addled brain is Alcatraz”
I think he means like this:
Rikers is not a federal facility. It is owned and operated by New York City. But I’m sure the Senator is thinking about this:Markwayne Mullin: "Let's have Riker & Alcatraz both open. So we got east coast & west coast both covered, & put our most notorious criminals in them so people understand we're a nation of laws again, unlike under Biden... I don't believe in keeping them comfortable. I want them… pic.twitter.com/m96ibI7Pwq
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 5, 2025
Rikers Island has had a reputation for violence, physical and mental abuse and neglect of its inmates, and has attracted press and judicial scrutiny that has resulted in numerous rulings against the New York City government. There have been numerous assaults by inmates on uniformed officers and other civilian staff, often resulting in serious injuries. In May 2013, Rikers Island ranked as one of the ten worst correctional facilities in the entire United States, based on reporting in Mother Jones magazine. A documented increase in violence on Rikers Island was reported by the 2010s. In 2015, there were 9,424 assaults, the highest number in five years. In October 2019, the New York City Council voted to close down the facility by December 31, 2026.Maybe he thinks the Feds can pick it up in 2027, and keep the memories alive.
Anyway, it gives everyone something to talk about besides the collapsing economy.
Markwayne Mullin has always struck me as pretty near a total idiot but he's hardly alone.
ReplyDeleteI don't think they're going to be able to escape the economy collapsing. I wonder if the collapse will come before Flag Day now.