On Monday, the president of El Salvador made a surprising proposal to the US. He suggested taking in convicted criminals from the US to fill their prisons. This would include US citizens who are already serving time. This is not a free service! The country would charge a fee to keep these prisoners. Claiming it would make El Salvador's prison system sustainable.

    Why would this be appealing to the US? Well, the United States has the highest number of prisoners in the world. Plus, the country has one of the highest crime rates in the world.  Currently, it tops out at 629 per 100, 000 people. So, sending criminals abroad could be a way to reduce the number of criminals in the US.

    President Donald Trump spoke on Tuesday, he said that the idea of sending criminals abroad could be a good deterrent to crime. He also mentioned that it could be a cheaper option than keeping them in US prisons. In other words, it could be a good deal for the US. He also claimed that the people who would be sent would be criminals who no longer have any ties to the US.

    Marco Rubio, a secretor of state, said that the idea is something to consider.  He said that the US must think about the legal stuff.  Marco also said that the US must also consider the constitution. He also said that this offer will make America safer.

    Elon Musk, who is a billionaire, chimed in on this. Musk said that the offer is a great idea.  This is a very interesting offer.  However, there are some issues with this idea.  It would be a legal and ethical nightmare. It is illegal to send a US citizen to a foreign country to be incarcerated. It doesn’t work that way.

    The president of El Salvador said that the offer is only for prisoners who have been convicted.  He also said that the prisoners would not be allowed to go outside of the prison.  He also said that the prisoners would be forced to work.  This includes cleaning, construction, and even farming.  However, this program has been heavily criticized.

    This program is known as "Plan Zero Idleness".  This program forces prisoners to work for the government.  They do not get paid for their work.  Critics have compared this to slavery.  This is because the 13th Amendment to the US Constitution allowed slavery as a punishment for a crime.

    Critics of the proposal have said that the US should not outsource its prisoners. They also said that the US should not send its prisoners to a country with a bad human rights record.

    Prison labor in the US has a checkered history. Convict leasing was a way to rebuild the South after the Civil War. Many prisoners work for little to no pay.  They are not protected by labor laws.

    It is unclear if El Salvador would use American prisoners for labor.  However, it is possible that they would want to use American prisoners to bolster their own penal workforce.

El Salvador's Surprising Offer: Jail Time for Cash?

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