NEW YORK — Former President Bill Clinton visited historic black churches in New York City on Sunday. He told the congregation at Antioch Baptist Church in Harlem that his administration “overdid it” with the 1994 crime bill, putting too many nonviolent offenders behind bars for long sentences.
-Bill Clinton Says He Almost Wants To Apologize For Exchange With Black Lives Matter Protesters
But he says he compensated by pushing for the release of some girlfriends of drug dealers earlier than their original harsh sentences. The former president has drawn the wrath of the Black Lives Matter movement, which says the bill resulted in a disproportionate number of African-Americans serving prison time.
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This confessions comes after the former president had a heated exchange with Black Lives Matters protesters during a stump speech for his wife and Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton. In that confrontation Bill defended his controversial crime bill and claimed that black protestors sided with the criminals who were taking “black lives.”
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The 42nd president was condemned by many for his offensive and condescending tone towards black protesters. A day later Clinton said that he “almost wanted to apologize for it.