Say It Ain’t So, Joe! Biden Turning His Back on Campaign Pledge to Fight Against Death Penalty
(Source) As the first president in American history to publicly oppose capital punishment, Joe Biden came into office with many hoping that he would take some action on his stated stance. Of course, he could not unilaterally repeal the federal death penalty, nor could he end capital punishment administered by the states, but there was much for him to do coming into office to curb the death penalty’s usage in our country. After all, he promised during his campaign to stop federal executions, propose legislation to abolish federal capital punishment, and provide incentives for the states to do so. This was notable as it was a 180-degree pivot from his former stance as the author of the 1994 crime bill. There is good reason for wanting to end the practice, too. Support for the practice is at near-historic lows, with about 55% of Americans supporting it. International groups like Amnesty International have urged Biden to act upon his campaign pledge. And unsurprisingly, minorities are disproportionately represented on death row. So now almost three years into his presidency, what steps has President Biden taken to try and limit or end capital punishment? Seemingly, very little. To his credit, he did [read more]