"The Party of Life" and the Death Penalty
When Brian Williams brought up Rick Perry’s unusually high record of executions while governor of Texas, he clearly thought he was making a critical point against the Republican presidential candidate. The crowd at Perry’s first debate as a candidate for president, however, cheered openly and with abandon when Perry’s death penalty record was mentioned.
This glorification of the death penalty by the Tea Party is, frankly, disturbing. For a political group that- in Perry’s own words- is the “party of life,” its positive attitude towards killing inmates feels strange and contradictory, not to mention incredibly detached. The US is one of the few developed nations who still executes its prisoners, and this is not something to be proud of. Our company on the list of countries that still engage in capital punishment includes Iran, North Korea, and Yemen; in Europe, for example, ninety-two percent of the UN member-states have abolished the death penalty.
There is, of course, the Constitutional argument, that the death penalty is cruel and unusual punishment, that it is not properly regulated or controlled and, therefore, can lead to incredible pain on the part of the prisoner.
Frankly, it is doubtful that the Constitutional argument would resonate with the Tea Party and Republican constituents who cheered at the debate, since they probably have little concern about the well being of a prisoner suffering what they so clearly consider to be a just punishment. Perhaps, then, these proponents of capital punishment will respond to an argument about the justness of the death penalty; after all, Perry said their support for his use of state executions is based in what he considers to be their affinity for justice.
Seven years ago in Texas, while Perry was governor, a man named Cameron Todd Willingham was sentenced to the death penalty and executed for committing an act of arson, which led to a non-accidental death of his children. In 2009, Texas ordered an investigation of new evidence and changed testimony that had been discovered and could clear him of all charges. Many scientists and investigators who reviewed the case found that the evidence against Willingham was not sufficient; however, Perry removed the chair of the investigation at the last minute and placed one who was more favorable to the governor. The new chair dismissed the investigation.
In 2009, over 3,000 men and women were on death row, and Texas alone had over 300 inmates waiting to be executed. Many of them were convicted before DNA evidence was customary to introduce by police or prosecutors.
It is abominable that the United States is so unconcerned with confirming evidence in death row cases. And as the American social right reminded the rest of the country two weeks ago, it is generally disinterested with the lack of fairness or justice in the punishment, let alone the cruelty of it. Still, these are the very same voters who complain about how America is viewed on the international stage today. Considering the huge majority of developed, leading nations that have taken actions to end capital punishment as compared to America’s cavalier attitude towards it, banning the death penalty could be a major route to reestablishing America’s place in the world.
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This glorification of the death penalty by the Tea Party is, frankly, disturbing. For a political group that- in Perry’s own words- is the “party of life,” its positive attitude towards killing inmates feels strange and contradictory, not to mention incredibly detached. The US is one of the few developed nations who still executes its prisoners, and this is not something to be proud of. Our company on the list of countries that still engage in capital punishment includes Iran, North Korea, and Yemen; in Europe, for example, ninety-two percent of the UN member-states have abolished the death penalty.
There is, of course, the Constitutional argument, that the death penalty is cruel and unusual punishment, that it is not properly regulated or controlled and, therefore, can lead to incredible pain on the part of the prisoner.
Frankly, it is doubtful that the Constitutional argument would resonate with the Tea Party and Republican constituents who cheered at the debate, since they probably have little concern about the well being of a prisoner suffering what they so clearly consider to be a just punishment. Perhaps, then, these proponents of capital punishment will respond to an argument about the justness of the death penalty; after all, Perry said their support for his use of state executions is based in what he considers to be their affinity for justice.
Seven years ago in Texas, while Perry was governor, a man named Cameron Todd Willingham was sentenced to the death penalty and executed for committing an act of arson, which led to a non-accidental death of his children. In 2009, Texas ordered an investigation of new evidence and changed testimony that had been discovered and could clear him of all charges. Many scientists and investigators who reviewed the case found that the evidence against Willingham was not sufficient; however, Perry removed the chair of the investigation at the last minute and placed one who was more favorable to the governor. The new chair dismissed the investigation.
In 2009, over 3,000 men and women were on death row, and Texas alone had over 300 inmates waiting to be executed. Many of them were convicted before DNA evidence was customary to introduce by police or prosecutors.
It is abominable that the United States is so unconcerned with confirming evidence in death row cases. And as the American social right reminded the rest of the country two weeks ago, it is generally disinterested with the lack of fairness or justice in the punishment, let alone the cruelty of it. Still, these are the very same voters who complain about how America is viewed on the international stage today. Considering the huge majority of developed, leading nations that have taken actions to end capital punishment as compared to America’s cavalier attitude towards it, banning the death penalty could be a major route to reestablishing America’s place in the world.
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