Rep. Ayanna Pressley wants Biden to grant more clemency before the end of his term

Massachusetts U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley has high hopes for President Biden's last days in office. A big priority, she said, is providing clemency to more Americans.

"We have a mass incarceration crisis in this country," said Pressley on WBUR's Morning Edition. "Our broken clemency system has contributed formidably to that."

Late last month, Biden commuted the sentences of 37 people on federal death row to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Two of those people have since denied the commutation, saying acceptance of it could hinder their appeals. Biden also commuted the prison sentences of some 1,500 people with lengthy prison sentences in early December. He had previously pardoned thousands of people charged with federal marijuana possession.

But Pressley said there's thousands more people awaiting clemency rulings, and has been advocating for the president to grant more before he leaves office.

"The tool of clemency writ large ... is about addressing systemic injustices, it is about second chances and redemption, affording people an opportunity to make a positive contribution," she said.

Another priority for Pressley is making sure federal money that's been awarded to states is distributed before Biden leaves office on Jan. 20, for fear that those awards could potentially be impacted by President-elect Trump's incoming administration.

"[I'm] pushing the president to move with urgency [in] protecting the investments that were passed in the last two Congresses," said Pressley. "We're talking about investments in our roads and our bridges, climate justice."

Massachusetts has been allocated billions of dollars in federal funds during the Biden administration, including awards for more than 190 different projects across the state through a bipartisan infrastructure law.

Pressley said she's worried a second Trump administration could disrupt the progress of the last four years, including a movement to forgive some student loans. She said she's also fears funding cuts for safety net programs like Head Start, a program she says is used widely in her district.