What ‘tough on crime’ Kamala Harris can learn from a famed Miami Democratic prosecutor | Opinion
Once Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris picks her running mate as expected this week, the race for the White House against Donald Trump officially begins in earnest — so will the attacks, accusations and “gotcha” scoops from both camps.
One Achilles heel for Democrats is the perception among some voters that the party is too soft on crime. Harris is the presidential candidate who’s best positioned to counter that. Like Republicans, Harris, too, can campaign on a public safety platform as former San Francisco district attorney and California attorney general.
Harris would do well to heed the good and difficult lessons from the once-famous Miami-Dade Democratic top prosecutor Janet Reno. Reno became U.S. attorney general during Bill Clinton’s administration and gained support from across the aisle.
A divided Congress confirmed Reno in 1993 with a 98-0 vote. Clinton joked it was the only unanimous vote he’d gotten from lawmakers.
Yes, tough-on-crime Democrats like Harris and Reno are a bit of an anomaly. The rule is that Democratic candidates usually push for judicial and prison reforms, not to crack down on criminals. Harris’ complicated record as a prosecutor, as Vox reported, cannot be easily defined as tough or soft on crime, but she did take strong — and sometimes controversial — stances on things such as sex crimes and parents who allowed their children to become truant, for which she was criticized.
Politically, Harris’ career is a double-edged sword. Democrats have criticized her for not being progressive enough and not seeking more criminal justice reforms as a prosecutor. However, some moderate Republicans and independents may vote for Harris for exactly the same reason.
Harris, 59, and Reno, who died in 2016, share the honor of being female law enforcement trailblazers. Reno was the first female Miami-Dade state attorney. Harris was the first female district attorney of San Francisco and later the first female attorney general of California.
Reno was staunch about law and order but with a heart. For example, Reno helped establish the Miami Drug Court, a model for courts around the country and a blessing for those addicted to drugs.
But there were controversial decisions Reno made.
In 1993, as a fresh new U.S. attorney general, Reno ordered the attack on the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas, to end a 51-day standoff. The siege erupted a massive fire at the compound that killed 82 people. Reno’s mentality likely led her to end the lawlessness she was told was occurring inside the branch compound. And she wanted to help the perceived victims.
Reno’s most controversial local decision was to order the raid by armed federal agents at the Miami home of the relatives of then 6-year-old Elian Gonzalez on Easter Sunday 2000. The law said the boy should be returned to his Cuban father and eventually flown back to Havana. Reno did not deal in gray areas.
Her decision deeply angered Miami’s Cuban exile community. After retiring, Reno ran for Florida governor in 2012. She lost in the Democratic primary. By then, neither Democrats nor Republicans were in her camp, which is evidence that Reno played on no team throughout her law enforcement career. She did what she thought was right and what the law said, even if it made her unpopular.
During her seven years as district attorney of San Francisco, Harris had a reputation of being a prosecutor dedicated to holding individuals who commit serious crimes accountable and helping nonviolent offenders turn their lives around.
According to her 2009 book, “Smart on Crime: A Career Prosecutor’s Plan to Make Us Safer,” felony conviction rates rose from 52% to 71%. At the same time, Harris implemented the Back on Track program, which provided nonviolent offenders with assistance, not prison sentences.
As Harris settles in as the Democratic presidential candidate, Trump wants voters to think she’s a crazy leftist. Whether that will work or not remains to be seen, but it won’t be as easy as Republicans hoped.
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