FLASHBACK: Even Democrats Doubt Joe Biden Will Be Able to Take on Rising Crime

Joe Biden is set to deliver a speech this afternoon on the administration’s plans to combat rising crime across the country, but even Democrats aren’t convinced Joe Biden is the right man for the job. Here’s a look at what some of the nation’s most prominent Democrats — including Vice President Kamala Harris — said about Joe Biden’s failed record on crime:

Then-Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA): “That 1994 crime bill, it did contribute to mass incarceration in our country. It encouraged and was the first time that we had a federal three-strikes law. It funded the building of more prisons in the states, and so I disagree sadly.”

Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ): “I think that Joe Biden is going to have to talk a lot about his record during this election. And I think it’s only right that he talk about everything from his support of the 1994 crime bill, which was one of the sort of jet fuel to mass incarceration, all the way to his stance on bussing. And even more than that — and I think that I said this last week and I think you heard something from Kamala as well last night — that it’s how we have this discussion.”

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA): “I think that the crime bill, the ‘94 crime bill, is a real problem. And we’ve seen — we’ve seen the evidence from it. So a starting place is to get rid of the harmful provisions there, but that’s not nearly enough. There is so much more we need to do, and so much more — we need to change our whole thinking about how we approach what is causing the problem with mass incarceration, what happens to incarcerated people, and how we bring people after incarceration back into our communities and our families.”

CNN’s Bakari Sellers: “I think Joe Biden — if he runs for president — and I’ve said this to you before Jake, I believe it was on State of the Union, and I’ll say it again — that if he runs for President of the United States, he has to do two things extremely quickly. He has to admit and understand his role in the ‘94 crime bill, figure out how he’s going to unravel that, and he has to look into a camera somewhere and he has to apologize to Anita Hill.”

Executive Director of Justice Democrats, Alexandra Rojas: “For the past 40 years, Joe Biden’s record has been being the architect of the 1994 crime bill…”

Whitney Robertson, Press Secretary at America Rising PAC: “Joe Biden’s failed record on addressing crime is raising serious doubts about his competence on the issue. Instead of working with Republicans to put forward a comprehensive solution for our skyrocketing crime rates, Democrats are too busy pointing fingers at one another and endorsing radical proposals like the ‘defund the police’ movement.”