Where The Candidates Stand, Part 2: The Republicans


Although the death penalty is still a hotly-debated national topic, the issue of capital punishment has receded somewhat from defining presidential candidates in the last few elections. However, for the first time since the 1980's, capital punishment has once again returned to the forefront of a presidential election. In this two-part series, we will look at the stances of both the Democrat and Republican tickets.

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Unlike the new official anti-death penalty stance the Democrats have taken, the Republican Party still widely supports the implementation of capital punishment. This should come as no surprise as their candidate for re-election, President George Bush, has a history of favoring the death penalty, which goes back to his term as governor of Texas. As Texas was sometimes referred to as "The Death Penalty State," Bush has long been known as the standard-bearer for capital punishment.

Bush's main argument in his support for the death penalty has revolved around deterrence. In a 2000 debate with then-Vice President Al Gore, Bush was asked if he believes the death penalty reduces crime: "I do [think the death penalty is a deterrence], that's the only reason to be for it. I don't think you should support the death penalty to seek revenge. I think the reason to support the death penalty is because it saves other people's lives." Bush has repeated this mantra of saving lives on several occasions and has maintained his support for capital punishment through this belief.

Under Bush between 1994 and 2000, the state of Texas executed 152 inmates--the most in the United States during that time period. Although Bush stated that he was "not proud of any record," he did say that he was proud that Texas held people accountable for their crimes. While governor, Bush underscored his commitment to capital punishment by granting only a single death penalty reprieve during his tenure. "I'm going to uphold the law of the land and let the political consequences be what they may. If it costs me politically, it costs me politically," he said.

The most prominent piece of legislature that President Bush has attempted to pass through Congress is the USA Patriot Act, which in part outlines domestic terrorism laws and penalties. Although the original bill was extremely unpopular, Bush is still pushing for ratification of parts of the bill. One of the parts is the Terrorist Penalties Enhancement Act of 2003, which would greatly expand the federal death penalty.

The copyright of the article Where The Candidates Stand, Part 2: The Republicans in Capital Punishment is owned by Glenn Arnold. Permission to republish Where The Candidates Stand, Part 2: The Republicans in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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