SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Police officers gather to remove activists during an anti death penalty protest in front of the US Supreme Court January 17, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Photo: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images)
As Trump DOJ Resumes Federal Capital Punishment After Two-Decade Lapse, Sanders Calls for Abolition of Death Penalty
"There's enough violence in the world. The government shouldn't add to it," said the 2020 Democratic presidential candidate.
Jul 25, 2019
Sen. Bernie Sanders on Thursday vowed to abolish the death penalty at the federal level if elected president after news broke that Attorney General William Barr has directed the Bureau of Prisons to resume capital punishment for the first time in nearly two decades.
"There's enough violence in the world. The government shouldn't add to it," tweeted Sanders, the first 2020 Democratic presidential candidate to respond to the news. "When I am president, we will abolish the death penalty."
\u201cThere\u2019s enough violence in the world. The government shouldn\u2019t add to it. When I am president, we will abolish the death penalty.\u201d— Bernie Sanders (@Bernie Sanders) 1564065481
In his directive, Barr ordered the Bureau of Prisons to schedule the execution of five inmates currently on death row.
According to the Washington Post the "last federal execution was in 2003."
"In the years since, there has been an informal moratorium on executions of federal prisoners, as Justice Department officials reviewed its lethal injection procedures," the Post reported. "That practice was underscored during the Obama administration by then-Attorney General Eric Holder's personal opposition to the death penalty, even while he approved prosecutors' decisions to seek the death penalty in specific trial."
An Unconstitutional Rampage
Trump and Musk are on an unconstitutional rampage, aiming for virtually every corner of the federal government. These two right-wing billionaires are targeting nurses, scientists, teachers, daycare providers, judges, veterans, air traffic controllers, and nuclear safety inspectors. No one is safe. The food stamps program, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are next. It’s an unprecedented disaster and a five-alarm fire, but there will be a reckoning. The people did not vote for this. The American people do not want this dystopian hellscape that hides behind claims of “efficiency.” Still, in reality, it is all a giveaway to corporate interests and the libertarian dreams of far-right oligarchs like Musk. Common Dreams is playing a vital role by reporting day and night on this orgy of corruption and greed, as well as what everyday people can do to organize and fight back. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Sen. Bernie Sanders on Thursday vowed to abolish the death penalty at the federal level if elected president after news broke that Attorney General William Barr has directed the Bureau of Prisons to resume capital punishment for the first time in nearly two decades.
"There's enough violence in the world. The government shouldn't add to it," tweeted Sanders, the first 2020 Democratic presidential candidate to respond to the news. "When I am president, we will abolish the death penalty."
\u201cThere\u2019s enough violence in the world. The government shouldn\u2019t add to it. When I am president, we will abolish the death penalty.\u201d— Bernie Sanders (@Bernie Sanders) 1564065481
In his directive, Barr ordered the Bureau of Prisons to schedule the execution of five inmates currently on death row.
According to the Washington Post the "last federal execution was in 2003."
"In the years since, there has been an informal moratorium on executions of federal prisoners, as Justice Department officials reviewed its lethal injection procedures," the Post reported. "That practice was underscored during the Obama administration by then-Attorney General Eric Holder's personal opposition to the death penalty, even while he approved prosecutors' decisions to seek the death penalty in specific trial."
Sen. Bernie Sanders on Thursday vowed to abolish the death penalty at the federal level if elected president after news broke that Attorney General William Barr has directed the Bureau of Prisons to resume capital punishment for the first time in nearly two decades.
"There's enough violence in the world. The government shouldn't add to it," tweeted Sanders, the first 2020 Democratic presidential candidate to respond to the news. "When I am president, we will abolish the death penalty."
\u201cThere\u2019s enough violence in the world. The government shouldn\u2019t add to it. When I am president, we will abolish the death penalty.\u201d— Bernie Sanders (@Bernie Sanders) 1564065481
In his directive, Barr ordered the Bureau of Prisons to schedule the execution of five inmates currently on death row.
According to the Washington Post the "last federal execution was in 2003."
"In the years since, there has been an informal moratorium on executions of federal prisoners, as Justice Department officials reviewed its lethal injection procedures," the Post reported. "That practice was underscored during the Obama administration by then-Attorney General Eric Holder's personal opposition to the death penalty, even while he approved prosecutors' decisions to seek the death penalty in specific trial."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.