There is a long standing myth that opposition to capital punishment is the bailiwick of liberals and lefties. Ever since my work with former Senator Mark Hatfield (R-OR), I’ve known first hand that isn’t the case. Sitting together at a long table on a platform at a luncheon to raise awareness of Alzheimer’s Disease research, all he and I discussed while waiting for the microphones to be turned on for the Alzheimer’s presentation was the abolition of capital punishment. After his retirement, Senator Hatfield participated in one final political campaign. A referendum to abolish the death penalty in his beloved Oregon.
Fine, Senator Hatfield was regarded as a moderate Republican, a RINO by today’s standards. He did not stand alone though, and many who stood with him were not moderates, but serious conservatives. You had to listen closely. They didn’t emphasize it much publicly. It wasn’t always what the conservative base wanted to hear. But, if you listened closely you knew that Pat Robertson had turned against the death penalty and that Bill O’Reilly’s most respected liberal was Mike Farrell because of Mike’s intellectually compelling work against the death penalty, a view O’Reilly shared.
Earlier this year, many conservatives who oppose the death penalty “came out of the closet” when Equal Justice USA helped establish a new organization, Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty (CCADP). Their statement of purpose gets to the heart of the matter,
“Questioning a system marked by inefficiency, inequity and inaccuracy.”
Would you be surprised to know that today’s edition of Red State calls on conservatives to reconsider their views on capital punishment? It’s true. Check out the link. Would opposition to the death penalty from Ron Paul surprise you? How about Oliver North? Here’s a list of some prominent conservatives and what they have to say. Let’s starts with those who are part of CCADP, then move to comments by others who aren’t officially on board – yet.
Those who have lent their names:
Richard Viguerie:
“…it’s a government system that kills people.”
Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice:
“Who amongst anyone is not above redemption? I think we have to be careful in executing final judgment. The one thing my faith teaches me—I don’t get to play God. I think you are short-cutting the whole process of redemption…I don’t want to be the person that stops that process from taking place”
Ron Paul (R-TX):
“I believe that support for the death penalty is inconsistent with libertarianism and traditional conservatism.“
Jeff Frazee, Founder and Executive Director, Young Americans for Liberty:
“…after studying the issue, I now strongly oppose the death penalty.”
Now some thoughts from other conservatives who have not officially lent their names:
Senator Rand Paul(R-KY):
“Even in the United States where we have the best due process probably in the world, we have probably executed people wrongfully for the death penalty, then found out through DNA testing many people on death row are there inaccurately.“
Rick Santorum(R-PA), supporting additional limits on capital punishment, though not abolition:
“I felt very troubled about cases where someone may have been convicted wrongly.“
Edward H. Crane, Founder and President, The CATO Institute:
“My own view on capital punishment is that it is morally justified, but that the government is often so inept and corrupt that innocent people might die as a result. Thus, I personally oppose capital punishment.”
John McLaughlin, creator and host of “The McLaughlin Group”
“The biggest government waste: The death penalty.”
Mary Kate Cary, commentator and former speechwriter for President George H.W. Bush
“It’s becoming harder to justify the death penalty in the face of evidence that our system is flawed… For years, people like me thought that being tough on crime meant supporting the death penalty. Times have changed, and it’s time for conservatives to get on the right side of the death penalty argument.”
Rev. Pat. Robertson
“I think a [death penalty] moratorium would indeed be very appropriate.”
Christian Josi, Former Executive Director, American Conservative Union
“My fundamental problems with the death penalty began as a result of my personal concern …that it was inconsistent for one to be ‘pro-life’ on the one hand and condone government execution on the other.”
Tucker Carlson, The Daily Caller:
“I’m uncomfortable with the death penalty under any circumstances.”
Oliver North:
“I think Capital punishment’s day is done in this county. I don’t think it’s fairly applied.”
Ramesh Ponnuru, Senior Editor National Review:
“I’ve turned against the death penalty…”
John Feehery, Republican strategist:
“We should rethink the death penalty in this country. If even one innocent person is wrongly put to death on behalf of the state, for me, that is enough to get rid of it.”
Rod Dreher:
“I quit believing in capital punishment when I became convinced that the state is not trustworthy to use this power responsibly.”
George Will:
“Conservatives, especially, should draw this lesson…Capital punishment, like the rest of the criminal justice system, is a government program, so skepticism is in order.”
Donald McCartin, former conservative jurist who sent nine men to death row in California:
“[The death penalty is] a waste of time and money…The only thing it does is prolong the agony of the victims’ families.”
Roy Brown, former Montana State Senator (R), with my favorite, almost all inclusive, analysis:
“It might be easier to allow the death penalty to continue if it were less expensive than life in prison. If the courts treated rich and poor equally. If it truly was a deterrent. If everyone that was executed was guilty. Unfortunately the sad truth about the death penalty is it is much more expensive. The courts do not dispense justice equally. It is not a deterrent. And sometimes, yes, sometimes they are innocent.”
Kathryn Jean Lopez, Former Editor, The National Review
“I’m opposed to the death penalty.”
The lists, and some of the quotes, are shortened from the CCADP website. I suggest a visit to the CCADP website to see for yourself why some conservatives have publicly entered the anti death penalty tent. To them, I say, Welcome.
Contributor, aka tidbits. Retired attorney in complex litigation, death penalty defense and constitutional law. Former Nat’l Board Chair: Alzheimer’s Association. Served on multiple political campaigns, including two for U.S. Senator Mark O. Hatfield (R-OR). Contributing author to three legal books and multiple legal publications.