Clinton Suggests A Crackdown On Youth Violence

WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, May 13) -- Under election-year pressure from Republicans who say he's soft on crime, President Bill Clinton called today for a tougher approach to inner-city gang violence and other juvenile offenses (96K WAV sound).

Clinton proposed longer prison sentences, more cooperation between police agencies to track gang members and prosecution of teenagers as adults for drug-running conspiracies, violent crimes or offenses involving guns. Clinton also asked Congress to reauthorize $160 million in crime-fighting funds.

While crime has fallen in recent years, the FBI has reported a 22 percent jump in the murder rate among teenagers between 1990 and 1994.

On the crime issue, Clinton has become centrist. Republicans will surely dismiss his remarks as election-year window dressing, while members of the Congress Black Caucus say the president needs to place a greater emphasis on crime prevention.

Clinton Suggests A Crackdown On Youth Violence

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