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Late
last month, we were treated to big news when another national organization came
out in support of repeal. The National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators
(NHCSL), which is a bipartisan group representing 320 state legislators, adopted
a resolution calling for the death penalty to be repealed. In a written
statement, NHCSL’s President, Ángel Cruz said, “We cannot allow more government
dollars to be diverted to killing people, instead of investing them in
prevention, rehabilitation, and effective crime fighting measures that ensure
greater safety in our communities.”
Conservatives Concerned in the field
CCATDP
had another busy month. After crisscrossing the country for the past several
weeks, I arrived in Oklahoma to participate in two press conferences on SQ 776,
which is a measure seeking to add the death penalty to Oklahoma’s Constitution.
One of the events was in Oklahoma City and the other in Tulsa. I was joined by
death row exonerees, Randy Steidl and Kwame Ajamu, as well as a host of
political and religious leaders from across the state who believe that the
proposal will undermine our system of checks and balances and create costly
litigation.
While
I was in the Sooner State, I also spoke at a couple political events. I
presented the conservative case against the death penalty at the Oklahoma
Republican Liberty Caucus and spoke at the Oklahoma City Liberty on Tap chapter.
Around thirty or more people attended each event, and both groups were dismayed
by how broken their state’s death penalty is. Many of the attendees were eager
to get involved, write letters to the editor and op-eds, and endorse CCATDP.
Conservatives Concerned in the media
Following
the events in Oklahoma, the media was eager to cover CCATDP and our allies.
•
The AP
reported on one of our press conferences, and more than a dozen outlets
reprinted the piece.
• Tulsa World, Red Dirt Report, Enid News, Fox 23, ABC Channel 8, NBC Channel 2, and News on 6 also covered the press conferences. • We additionally enjoyed mentions in the Edmond Sun, the Oklahoman, and another Tulsa World article. • The media outside of Oklahoma was likewise interested in CCATDP. We were included in articles in the Hill, Georgia’s Newnan Times-Herald, and I penned an op-ed describing why New Mexico shouldn’t attempt to revive the death penalty.
Upcoming
CCATDP
will return to the State
Policy Network’s annual conference for the third year in a row. This year it
will be in Nashville. If you’re in the area from October 3-6, then by all means,
please drop by and say hello!
Share your concerns
Late
last month, a video featuring two CCATDP supporters, Pat Monks and Ron Briggs,
was released. It’s entitled “A Conservative Concern,” and it aims to explain why
conservatives are increasingly opposing the death penalty. Please help us get
the word out about this video and consider sharing it with your friends on
Facebook by clicking
here. www.conservativesconcerned.org
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