US carries out the 1st federal execution in nearly 2 decades

[Green Line]

Great, hopefully the first of many more.  Its ridiculous that there was a 17 year gap.

[DabbingSanta]

We really need progressives to start focusing on real issues like abolishing the death penalty and ending corporal punishment in public schools. Long overdue IMHO, just saying!

[PSOL]

As utterly despicable and unsympathetic as this guy was, I'm not happy at all.

[Progressive Pessimist]

This guy was utter scum, but nobody should be sentenced to death by the state. It's a matter of principle and what kind of country we want to live in, not a matter of getting even or scoring points.

[pbrower2a]

He was convicted of murder during acts of racketeering. Ordinarily this would apply to the more conventional crime syndicates... but neo-Nazis often imitate the worst crime syndicate that ever existed, the German Nazi Party.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Second execution in that time frame carried out.

https://twitter.com/CNN/status/1283756064110977025?s=19

[Green Line]

While I support these executions, I have to acknowledge the hypocrisy.  Imagine if all the facts remained the same but the Trump Administration had executed two black men this week instead.  We would be having another weekend of riots and lecturing Op Eds from the NYT.

Instead, we have nary a peep from the outrage industry.

[The Mikado]

And there's another one scheduled to happen tonight.

Due to COVID, this year is on pace to be a record low number of executions in the US (on pace for 15, lowest since 1988), but 4 would be by the federal government, compared to 0 every year since 2003.

[Progressive Pessimist]

And there's another one scheduled to happen tonight.

Due to COVID, this year is on pace to be a record low number of executions in the US (on pace for 15, lowest since 1988), but 4 would be by the federal government, compared to 0 every year since 2003.

As if enough Americans haven't died already of the disease itself, including prisoners.

While I support these executions, I have to acknowledge the hypocrisy.  Imagine if all the facts remained the same but the Trump Administration had executed two black men this week instead.  We would be having another weekend of riots and lecturing Op Eds from the NYT.

Instead, we have nary a peep from the outrage industry.

Oh please, if you just look at this thread alone there are plenty on the left who are bothered by the executions of these white men, and people of every race and ethnicity. What happened to us being the ones who "unnecessarily" brought race into conversations?

[HillGoose]

why doesn't the gov just start putting down pedophiles? i always wonder this.

[Green Line]

And there's another one scheduled to happen tonight.

Due to COVID, this year is on pace to be a record low number of executions in the US (on pace for 15, lowest since 1988), but 4 would be by the federal government, compared to 0 every year since 2003.

As if enough Americans haven't died already of the disease itself, including prisoners.

While I support these executions, I have to acknowledge the hypocrisy.  Imagine if all the facts remained the same but the Trump Administration had executed two black men this week instead.  We would be having another weekend of riots and lecturing Op Eds from the NYT.

Instead, we have nary a peep from the outrage industry.

Oh please, if you just look at this thread alone there are plenty on the left who are bothered by the executions of these white men, and people of every race and ethnicity. What happened to us being the ones who "unnecessarily" brought race into conversations?

I'm talking about the country.  This is not the country.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

And there's another one scheduled to happen tonight.

Due to COVID, this year is on pace to be a record low number of executions in the US (on pace for 15, lowest since 1988), but 4 would be by the federal government, compared to 0 every year since 2003.

Next guy Dustin Honken is perhaps most notable as he's from Iowa, which doesn't have a state death penalty. It'll be the first execution for an Iowa crime since 1963.

However...Honken is probably the most awful of them so far. Just read up on his crime. The judge who sentenced him to death even said he normally opposes the death penalty but wouldn't in this case. I still do but it's pretty hard to try to muster energy to save people like Honken.

Still glad executions will almost certainly halt under a Biden DoJ.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

So far this year we've had three federal executions (carried out within a span of four days) versus 7 carried out by the states (AL, GA, MO, TN and TX, the usual suspects).

And there's another one scheduled to happen tonight.

Due to COVID, this year is on pace to be a record low number of executions in the US (on pace for 15, lowest since 1988), but 4 would be by the federal government, compared to 0 every year since 2003.

Next guy Dustin Honken is perhaps most notable as he's from Iowa, which doesn't have a state death penalty. It'll be the first execution for an Iowa crime since 1963.

Interestingly that was also the very last federal execution until 2001.

Still glad executions will almost certainly halt under a Biden DoJ.

I think Biden DoJ would follow a similar path regarding the death penalty as Obama DoJ: keep them on death row, but not push for actual executions.

At least Biden actually declared himself to be opposed to the death penalty, unlike Obama.

[politicallefty]

I've always thought it disturbing the company this country keeps when it comes to the death penalty. With very limited exceptions (I think maybe Japan?), it's virtually all authoritarian regimes or theocracies with poor human rights records. In that vein, it should be of absolutely no surprise that Trump and Barr would rather have the US in that group instead of our traditional strong friends and allies. Not even the Bush Administration really pushed it, apart from 3 executions early in his first term and one of those with Timothy McVeigh.

Unfortunately, Obama was not good on this issue, apart from not actual authorizing any executions. I think he even came out against a SCOTUS decision one time where the majority had voted to further restrict the death penalty. I don't remember the specific case or year, just that it was, of course, authored by Justice Kennedy.

[MarkD]

why doesn't the gov just start putting down pedophiles? i always wonder this.

Because it's unconstitutional. See Kennedy v. Louisiana

Great, hopefully the first of many more.  Its ridiculous that there was a 17 year gap.

I echo Green Line's sentiment. It's overdue for the federal government to start executing people, and I didn't even know there was any haltage.