Several states are moving even closer to repealing the death penalty. In a bipartisan effort and with the support of murder victims’ family members, the Nebraska Judiciary Committee unanimously approved a bill to end capital punishment. It now heads to the floor of the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature for consideration.
Kansas is also inching towards repealing capital punishment, with many conservative legislators supporting the measure. On March 17,conservatives and religious leaders came together for a press conference encouraging the legislature and governor to support replacing the death penalty with life without parole. You can watch the video here.
Conservative heavyweight and National Review editor, Ramesh Ponnuru, even urged the governors of both Kansas and Nebraska to back the repeal.
Other national conservative leaders are also expressing their concerns with capital punishment. Recently, Bruce Fein said, “The death penalty is too perilous to risk to human error.” Fein is former Associate Deputy Attorney General and General Counsel to the Federal Communications Commission under President Ronald Reagan.
Conservatives Concerned in the Media
CCATDP enjoyed a large media presence again this month. We were highlighted by numerous outlets.
• While at CPAC, members of the CCATDP team were interviewed on Sirius XM’s Tell Me Everything with John Fugelsang, Lars Larson Radio Show, Boston Herald Radio Show, Talk Radio News Service, Warfighter Radio, and many others.
• I was interviewed by Al-Jazeera America, Catholic News Service, Reason, Scott Horton Radio Show, Orlando Sentinel, Georgia News Network, and Atlanta’s 11 Alive News.
• We were also covered by Newsweek, Fusion, and the Morris News Network.
• Additionally, I wrote an op-ed for Voices of Liberty on Utah’s decision to attempt to reinstate the firing squad.
Conservatives Concerned in the Field
For the 3rd year in a row, we returned to CPAC and had another wonderful experience. Our booth was often swamped by supporters wanting to learn how to become involved. Many of them also felt that the death penalty was antithetical to conservatism. One person dropped by just to high-five the CCATDP team.
I also spoke at the Pennsylvania Young Americans for Liberty state conference and hosted a very popular exhibitor booth. One supporter told me “I oppose the death penalty because I’ve been to the DMV,” meaning that the inefficiency and mistakes found in government programs create an environment that is too dangerous to risk human lives.
CCATDP’s Heather Beaudoin presented at the regional Christian Community Development Association Conference in Grand Rapids, Michigan on March 6th. She spoke to the group about our work with Evangelicals across the country, and they were enthusiastic about the movement that’s happening.
I presented the conservative case against the death penalty to the Georgia Center Right Coalition at the Georgia Capitol, and afterwards, I discussed why capital punishment is inconsistent with conservatism at the Georgia Tea Party in Marietta, Georgia. Many of the attendees told me that they changed their position on capital punishment on the spot, and some of these people are now speaking out against the death penalty.
Upcoming
On April 21, I will be speaking at Campbellsville Universityin Kentucky to discuss why conservatives are increasingly opposing the death penalty. I will also be on Dr. John Chowning’s TV show on WLCU in Campbellsville, Kentucky.
Please tune in or come say hello if you are in Kentucky!