title: TOP PRIORITY: Obama Springs Crack Dealers Out Of Prison In Record Numbers
text: The controversy surrounding Obama s prison reforms continues with the release of more  non-violent  drug dealers. Andy McCarthy had this to say about the lawlessness of Obama s release of prisoners: In making a mockery of his core constitutional duty to execute the laws faithfully, the broad law-enforcement discretion the Constitution vests in the executive branch has been President Obama s preferred sleight of hand. In reality,  prosecutorial discretion  is merely a resource-allocation doctrine peculiar to criminal law: a recognition of the obvious fact that enforcement resources are finite; that it is neither possible nor desirable that every penal infraction be prosecuted; and therefore that priorities must be established about which cases should be pursued, which left to state law-enforcement to handle, and which overlooked. The doctrine has never been what the president has turned it into: a license not merely to ignore but to rewrite laws   not just penal laws; any laws   with which he disagrees on policy grounds. He s set a record with the number of releases:President Barack Obama commuted the prison sentences of 95 people, mainly for non-violent, drug-related offenses, and pardoned two others, the White House said in a statement on Friday.Obama has made reforms to the US criminal justice system to reduce the number of people serving long sentences for non-violent drug crimes one of the top priorities for his remaining year in office.With the move on Friday, President Obama, who signed the Fair Sentencing Act in 2010, has now granted 184 commutations during his time in office   more than the last five presidents combined.The number of sentences Obama commuted Friday is more than double the number he granted this summer and it s the third time this year he s given clemency, the Washington Post reported. I commuted the sentences of 95 men and women who had served their debt to society, another step forward in upholding our ideals of justice and fairness,  Obama said.The Fair Sentencing Act reduced the sentencing disparities between crack and powder cocaine offenses and many of the pardoned offenders would have faced shorter penalties under today s laws.Each of the 95 people who received a commutation Friday got a personal letter from the president.He wrote:  I believe in your ability to prove the doubters wrong, and change your life for the better.Ex-Democratic presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter reduced sentences for 90 inmates total.Republicans George W Bush, his father and Ronald Reagan commuted sentences for 27 people.