Last night the Republican candidates for President of the United States, all of whom hope to garner the GOP nomination and face President Obama in the Fall of 2012, squared off in the first debate that included Texas Guv Perry.
All of the Republican candidates voiced opinions that seem more extreme than what they have espoused in the past, perhaps catering to the extremists in the Tea Party.
All of them that is, except Guv. Perry, who already has been very extreme even as Texas Governor. There was no need for him to turn up his extremism for this debate.
While most people may be talking about the disagreement between Perry and Romney over the future of social security with Perry advocating its elimination, it was another moment that most strongly caught my attention. There was a question posed to Perry about his record of capital punishment as Governor and in the question it was stated how he had overseen the execution of more than 200 people during his time as Governor. Right at that moment, the Republican audience, even before the question could be finished, erupted in enormous applause.
It was a sickening moment that I think is symbolic of what a potential Perry Presidency would be like.
Celebrating executions.
Opposing science.
Treating old and sick people like they are disposable.
One might expect if Perry becomes President that the number of people executed in the US as a whole will dramatically increase under his leadership. Unfortunately as has been the case in Texas, some of executed will later be found out to have been innocent.
Think of the wildly extreme nature of a leader and a political party being proud of so many executions, particularly when they claim to be “pro-life”. Their real agenda is pro-death.
The key problem with capital punishment–there is no room for error. And as we all know, humans and the US and Texas justice systems just are not perfect.
Having a candidate for President and a new Republican party that are proud of executing more people than anyone else should give the American Electorate the shivers.