We are excited to announce our newest supporter, Austin Petersen! Austin is a political activist and the founder and editor of the Libertarian Republic. He said,
“Government has no business in the taking of life that is not strictly related to national defense. The same people who don’t believe that government can efficiently deliver health services or regulate the economy believe it can execute people without a mistake. Government should have no authority to make decisions where a mistake could mean the taking of an innocent life. I would rather see 100 guilty men go free, than to see one innocent person executed.”
Conservatives Concerned in the media
We were recently featured by News Works in an article titled Death Spiral of the Death Penalty. The author, Dick Polman, discusses waning support for the death penalty and the decline of its use. He cites Conservatives Concerned about the Death Penalty’s emergence and our concerns as some of the many reasons why capital punishment is failing.
The Lincoln Journal Star published an article covering the state of the death penalty in Nebraska, which rarely executes anyone. The publication highlights CCATDP as a “boomlet of opposition” and as proof that the death penalty is not solely a liberal issue.
Conservatives Concerned in the field
Conservatives Concerned about the Death Penalty is ramping up our efforts in 2014. I have been asked by the Lipscomb College Republicans to present to their group on January 24 in Nashville, Tennessee. We will discuss the many ways that the death penalty is inconsistent with conservatism and the numerous failures of capital punishment.
I am also presenting at the inaugural Conservatism Outside of the Box conference in Atlanta, Georgia on February 15. National leaders from across the conservative spectrum will be in attendance at this conference.
Where it all began
Conservatives Concerned will be back at CPAC in March! We launched at CPAC last year, and this first year has been tremendous. Since last March, we’ve sparked more than 250 media hits in daily newspapers, conservative blogs, talk radio, and television. We’ve been to numerous conferences and events connecting with conservatives who share our concerns that the death penalty is broken. This year the CCATDP staff will be joined by grassroots partners from Texas, North Carolina, and Montana, so look out for us in the exhibit hall and criss crossing the conference!