The Death Penalty

Dear Friends,

Capital punishment is in the news quite often these days.  Even Jeb Bush, who presided over 21 executions as Governor of Florida, has announced that he is conflicted about the death penalty.  He nevertheless remains a supporter of the death penalty.  There is a short but good article in The Guardian (here).

Hillary Clinton finally after many years of silence on the issue has indicated that she thinks that the death penalty is applied too often and not fairly, but she still supports it.  Secretary Clinton evolved from thinking the death penalty was unconstitutional to being a strong on crime person to her current position that we need significant criminal justice reform including reform of the death penalty, but we should not abolish the death penalty.

There are two articles that I would recommend to you if you want to know more about the wide range of positions that Hillary Clinton has held during her lifetime.  The first is entitled "Hillary's forgotten death penalty shift" by Adam Lerner in Politico in April 2015 (here).  The article focuses on her position when she was the head of a legal aid clinic at the University of Arkansas and how she has evolved over time.  The second is entitled "A (More or Less) Definitive Guide to Hillary Clinton's Record on Law and Order" by Eli Hager at The Marshall Project (here) published in May 2015.  This article is exactly what the title says, and it is very comprehensive.  Both these articles were written before Secretary Clinton's recent statement indicating support for the death penalty.

Bernie Sanders has opposed the death penalty for his entire career.  Hillary Clinton has moved around a lot on the issue, but continues to support the death penalty.  Another clear difference in the views of these two candidates.

Thanks for reading and please comment,
The Unabashed Liberal