Photo: Evan Vucci/AP

The clock is winding down for the Obama administration, and our POTUS is out here commuting sentences and granting clemency with a swiftness in the final months of his presidency. On Tuesday, President Obama elevated the number of inmates receiving clemency on his watch to more than 1,000 when he granted commutations to 79 more nonviolent drug offenders imprisoned under harsh mandatory drug sentencing laws. Eighteen of the offenders were serving life sentences.

In a conference call with reporters, Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates said that the Justice Department will continue to recommend more commutations through the end of the Obama administration.

During his campaign, President-elect Trump, who has vehemently criticized Obama's initiative, called for a tougher stance on crime saying in reference to the commuted prisoners, “Some of these people are bad dudes…and these are people who are out, they’re walking the streets. Sleep tight, folks.”

The Obama administration is moving quickly to review pending clemency applications before Trump takes office. The urgency of the situation is dire, and for many inmates, it's a matter of life and death.

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