US News and World Report published an article detailing Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty’s success at CPAC and the strong conservative support for repealing the death penalty.
Journalist, Elizabeth Flock states,
For years, those who supported the death penalty largely skewed conservative.
She went on to say,
But that stereotype no longer holds true.
The article pointed to conservative grassroots activists and leaders who are now open to repealing the death penalty, such as Jay Sekulow and Governor Sam Brownback.
I was recently given the opportunity to write a guest blog post for JTHMishMash.com explaining why conservatives are reevaluating the death penalty. I said,
“One big consideration for conservatives is innocence. So far, more than 140 people have been freed from death row for wrongful convictions and others have been executed despite serious doubts about the evidence. Our judicial system cannot be 100% accurate, and many conservatives are wary of government power– especially when U.S. citizens can be killed.
For fiscal conservatives, the cost of the death penalty is indefensible. Several studies have shown that death penalty cases are up to 20 times more expensive than those where the sentence is life without the possibility of release.”
I went on to say,
“Conservatives everywhere are joining together to raise doubts about this wasteful and overreaching government program; even those who believe in capital punishment are beginning to accept that the death penalty system is irrevocably broken and should be ended.”
The New Republic’s recent article details Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty’s launch at CPAC.
Many people in the exhibit hall that afternoon agreed that the death penalty—when described as the purest manifestation of state power and free spending run amok—had probably outlived its usefulness.
Jonathan Meritt of Religion New Service reported on Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty’s upcoming debut at CPAC 2013.
“The group is assembling a diverse group of supporters, but perhaps most surprising among the early list is Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice, and Richard Viguerie, known as the “Funding Father” of the conservative movement.”
He went on to say,
“[O]ne has to wonder if this new effort signals the genesis of a renewed debate in the coming years.
If you ask me, it is a conversation too few conservatives are actually having. And one that’s far too important to avoid.”
Fortunately, more and more conservatives are having this conversation now, and the launch of Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty will surely bring the dialogue to a wider conservative audience.
Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty, a national network of conservatives questioning the alignment of capital punishment with conservative principles, will debut at CPAC (March 14-16).
Local conservative leaders from Montana, Kentucky, Texas, and Kansas will be in attendance. National figures Jay Sekulow and Richard A. Viguerie are also supporters of the group.
“Conservatives should question how the death penalty actually works in order to stay true to small government, reduction in wasteful spending, and respect for human life,” said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice.
Roy Brown, former Montana House Majority Leader and a republican candidate for Montana governor in 2008, helped found Montana Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty several years ago. Brown was enthusiastic about expanding his grassroots effort, and will attend CPAC as part of the new national effort.
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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