MSNBC’s Amanda Sakuma has been following Nebraska’s conservative effort to repeal the death penalty, and this evening she published an article describing why Nebraska is ripe for repeal. She said
The Nebraska legislature is expected to take up the issue as early as Wednesday, setting the stage for the “uni-cam” to vote on overriding Ricketts’ veto. Lawmakers need to muster 30 votes to strike the death penalty from the books in Nebraska. And judging by the legislature’s 32-15 vote last week on the repeal bill, supporters have the numbers on their side – with a few to spare.
The strong push to repeal the death penalty in the heart of the Deep South marks a growing change in the debate, as policy makers, advocates and religious leaders have sought to recast concerns with capital punishment as violating core tenets of conservatism. While the majority of Americans say that they favor the death penalty, Republicans’ support has dropped 9% in the last decade. For many, the death penalty symbolizes the antithesis of a conservative emphasis on small-government, religious values and minimal spending.
CCATDP’s Heather Beaudoin wrote an op-ed for the Religion News Service describing the Christian and conservative opposition to the death penalty. Beaudoin wrote,
Nebraska is showing the most visible signs of a change in thinking by Christians and conservatives on the death penalty, and Catholics are helping to lead the way.
She stated,
Nebraska conservative Christian politicians are not operating in a vacuum. This year in Kansas, Kentucky, New Hampshire and South Dakota, their counterparts sponsored bills to repeal capital punishment. In South Dakota, a Republican state representative who is an evangelical pastor changed his mind on the death penalty and sponsored the bill to repeal it. Conservatives in red states such as Tennessee, North Carolina and Montana, as well as Nebraska, have formed groups to question the death penalty.
She also wrote,
Interestingly, evangelicals in Nebraska and elsewhere are joining Catholics in re-evaluating their support for capital punishment. For example, the Rev. William Thornton told the Nebraska Legislature’s judiciary committee:
“I’d like to say that as a Christ follower who believes that Christ died for all, that no person is beyond redemption, that I believe we should never advocate cutting someone’s life short and thereby guaranteeing no chance for them to experience redemption.”
Julie Bosman of the New York Times recently interviewed Nebraska Senator Colby Coash and me for an article she wrote on the push to repeal the death penalty in Nebraska. She noted that,
In the latest sign that vigorous support for capital punishment can no longer be taken for granted among Republicans, a coalition of Republican, Democratic and independent lawmakers has backed a bill that would replace capital punishment with life imprisonment. Its members cite reasons that range from fiscal and practical to ideological.
She quoted Senator Coash as stating,
“I’m a conservative guy — I’ve been a Republican my whole life,” he said in an interview. “A lot of my conservative colleagues have come to the conclusion that we’re there to root out inefficient government programs. Some people see this as a pro-life issue. Other people see it as a good-government issue. But the support that this bill is getting from conservative members is evidence that you can get justice through eliminating the death penalty, and you can get efficient government through eliminating the death penalty.”
Time Magazine’s Alex Altman recently highlighted the effort to repeal the death penalty in Nebraska. After voting three times overwhelmingly to repeal capital punishment this year, he wrote,
The landmark vote was a reflection of the shifting politics of criminal justice. For decades, law-and-order conservatives have been staunch proponents of capital punishment. But in recent years, a growing number of Republicans have begun to oppose the death penalty, arguing it violates the central tenets of conservatism.
“It does things that are cardinal sins for conservatives,” says Marc Hyden, a former NRA staffer from Georgia who serves as coordinator of a national group called Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty. “It risks innocent life. It wastes taxpayer money when there’s cheaper alternatives, and fails to be representative of a limited government—while it meanwhile fails to deter crime.”
He also said,
Stacy Anderson, a conservative Christian and former Republican operative who directs a group called Nebraskans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, said the unique nature of the state legislature—the only nonpartisan, unicameral legislature in the U.S.—helped
All eyes are on Nebraska as Governor Ricketts considers whether to sign or veto the repeal legislation that was passed with broad bipartisan support. I was interviewed by multiple outlets on the push to abolish capital punishment in the Cornhusker State.
Thomas Zimmer from Sputnik News said,
Hyden said Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts has pledged to veto the legislation within five days, but after that period, the state legislature has another five days to overturn his veto.
The bill now goes to Ricketts for him to sign or veto after passing two times before when the repeal of the Nebraska death penalty was brought before the Nebraska legislature.
“If we get this across the goal line, Nebraska will be the first red [Republican] state to repeal the death penalty in over 40 years,” Hyden said. “I hope this catches fire and snowballs, but we need to finalize the repeal before looking forward.”
The Daily Caller’s Casey Harper quoted me as saying,
“What is happening in Nebraska is unsurprising because a growing number of conservatives are increasingly expressing their concerns about the irrevocably broken death penalty system,” Marc Hyden, national coordinator for Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty told TheDCNF.
The Nebraska legislature made history twice recently by voting 30-13 to repeal the death penalty on the bill’s first reading and then 30-16 on the second reading, after defeating a filibuster. A majority of conservatives in Nebraska’s nonpartisan legislature support the measure.
The votes come on the heels of two press conferences in Nebraska, one consisting of conservative legislators and leaders from around the state and another with religious leaders, both calling for capital punishment’s end. Nebraska would be the first “red state” to repeal the death penalty in roughly 40 years. The legislature must vote one more time before the bill is sent to the governor’s office for his signature or veto.
It makes sense that conservatives and religious leaders in Nebraska and elsewhere are opposing capital punishment with greater frequency. Last month, a report was released that stated that the “FBI forensic unit exaggerated evidence that helped to incriminate defendants.” Using unscientific and unreliable forensic analysis of hair samples, thousands of people have been convicted of various crimes, including 32 that resulted in death sentences, of which 12 have already been executed.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Arlington Falls Church Young Republicans
The Conservative Case Against The Death Penalty
Conservative Group to discuss shift away from capital punishment
May 12, 2015 – Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty (CCATDP), a national network of conservatives questioning the alignment of capital punishment with their principles, will be presenting at the monthly meeting of the Arlington Falls Church Young Republicans (AFCYRs) on Monday evening May 18th at 7:30PM.
“The Arlington Falls Church Young Republicans are excited to continue our discussion about the criminal justice system,” said Matthew Hurtt, AFCYR Chairman. “Many prominent conservatives have questioned the death penalty as another costly, inefficient, bureaucratic, government-run operation. Our members are interested in hearing CCATDP’s argument behind raising the red flag about the death penalty in the U.S.”
CCATDP national coordinator Marc Hyden, who worked as a field representative for the National Rifle Association prior to taking this position, will be making the presentation.
“I will make the case why capital punishment violates many of the conservative values that we hold dear,” said Hyden.
Conservative media outlet Townhall featured Conservatives Concerned about the Death Penalty and presented the conservative case against capital punishment. Townhall’s editor, Leah Barkoukis wrote,
If we believe in limited government, fiscal responsibility and pro-life policies unilaterally, it’s time to give capital punishment a second thought.
Barkoukis interviewed CCATDP’s Heather Beaudoin and me for this article. She said,
“I don’t think there’s anything more important than life,” Hyden expressed, “so for a lot of my fellow conservatives that are also prolife, this is a big issue, we don’t want to see innocent U.S. citizens being killed by the state, we know there’s a risk because humans and governments are fallible, so when you give them the power to kill people, guilty people, inevitably innocent people will fall through the cracks.”
Barkoukis also quoted Heather Beaudoin,
“I think 10 years ago it would’ve been hard to find a group of Evangelical folks who were against the death penalty … but we are seeing a real shift in that now,” she said.
Yesterday I penned a guest post for US Daily Review on the ongoing Republican effort to repeal the death penalty in Nebraska. I wrote,
Conservative and Republican leaders in Nebraska are leading an effort to become the first ‘red state’ to repeal the death penalty in the modern era. On April 16th, the unicameral legislature voted 30-13 in support of LB-268, which would repeal capital punishment and replace it with life without parole.
Seventeen Republicans voted with the majority. They came from a variety of perspectives and affiliations, but their core principles – limited government, fiscal responsibility, and respect for life – united them in shared concerns about the death penalty. Rather than make us safer, they believe capital punishment has proven to be a costly government program prone to error and abuse.
I also said,
More than ever, conservatives recognize that the criminal justice system must hold individuals accountable, protect the innocent, be responsive to victims’ needs, spend taxpayer dollars responsibly, and be effective in reducing crime.
Questioning a system marked by inefficiency, inequity, and inaccuracy.
Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty is a network of political and social conservatives who question the alignment of capital punishment with conservative principles and values.
We are a project of Equal Justice USA, a national organization working to end the death penalty in the United States.
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