ST. LOUIS, MO – With a Biden administration entering the White House in January, many on the progressive side of the Democrat aisle are shouting their proverbial wish lists in the hopes that Joe Biden will pander to their desires.
One of these wishes is from incoming U.S. Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri, touted as the latest addition to “The Squad,” who hopes Biden would grant clemency to every federal death-row inmate.
There are 52 death-row inmates in federal custody and a review of their cases shows that every one of them was involved in one or more murders.
In an op-ed for Time magazine, Bush claimed that the inmates on death row are “being legally tortured by a federal government” and that there’s “no place for the death penalty in a just, humane society.”
Bush’s op-ed was soaked with mournful compassion for convicted murderers and terrorists, suggesting that “it doesn’t have to be this away” and that Biden both could and should intervene the moment he steps into office. Bush wrote:
“It’s this same authority that Joe Biden should use when he becomes President on January 20. With the stroke of a pen, he can grant clemency to all who are on federal death row, reducing their sentences or pardoning them altogether.”
For those who don’t understand the difference between clemency and pardoning, clemency would be a reduction in administered sentence (such as going from death row to life in prison) and pardoning is letting someone out of prison and erasing their record.
Bush presents this take on death-row inmates as though it’s a responsibility that Biden must tackle, framing it as such:
“Joe Biden cannot leave the lives of those on death row in the hands of future presidents. If he truly opposes the death penalty, he must do everything in his power to stop it for good. Granting clemency to all on federal death row is his most effective tool.”
Perhaps her most controversial point centered on the Dec. 10 execution of murderer Brandon Bernard, expressing that his punishment was some sort of travesty. She said:
“In Brandon’s case, five of the jurors called for the Trump Administration to spare his life. The former federal prosecutor involved in the case wrote an op-ed about why she didn’t think he deserved to be put to death. Advocates, lawmakers, celebrities and the public pleaded and called on Trump to do the right thing. Still, it was not enough.”
The person to whom Bush is referring was part of a pretty horrific double murder back in 1999. Bernard and his accomplice, Christopher Vialva, were in Killeen, Texas, where they met Iowa youth ministers Todd and Stacie Bagley. The two men had asked the couple for a ride but then locked them in the trunk of their car at gunpoint.
They drove around for hours with the Bagleys in the trunk, stopping to try to pawn the woman’s wedding ring and take whatever valuables they could find inside the vehicle.
Vialva and Bernard then parked the car on the Fort Hood military reservation and Vialva shot both of the Bagleys in the head. Bernard then set the car on fire.
One of these wishes is from incoming U.S. Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri, touted as the latest addition to “The Squad,” who hopes Biden would grant clemency to every federal death-row inmate.
There are 52 death-row inmates in federal custody and a review of their cases shows that every one of them was involved in one or more murders.
In an op-ed for Time magazine, Bush claimed that the inmates on death row are “being legally tortured by a federal government” and that there’s “no place for the death penalty in a just, humane society.”
Bush’s op-ed was soaked with mournful compassion for convicted murderers and terrorists, suggesting that “it doesn’t have to be this away” and that Biden both could and should intervene the moment he steps into office. Bush wrote:
“It’s this same authority that Joe Biden should use when he becomes President on January 20. With the stroke of a pen, he can grant clemency to all who are on federal death row, reducing their sentences or pardoning them altogether.”
For those who don’t understand the difference between clemency and pardoning, clemency would be a reduction in administered sentence (such as going from death row to life in prison) and pardoning is letting someone out of prison and erasing their record.
Bush presents this take on death-row inmates as though it’s a responsibility that Biden must tackle, framing it as such:
“Joe Biden cannot leave the lives of those on death row in the hands of future presidents. If he truly opposes the death penalty, he must do everything in his power to stop it for good. Granting clemency to all on federal death row is his most effective tool.”
Perhaps her most controversial point centered on the Dec. 10 execution of murderer Brandon Bernard, expressing that his punishment was some sort of travesty. She said:
“In Brandon’s case, five of the jurors called for the Trump Administration to spare his life. The former federal prosecutor involved in the case wrote an op-ed about why she didn’t think he deserved to be put to death. Advocates, lawmakers, celebrities and the public pleaded and called on Trump to do the right thing. Still, it was not enough.”
The person to whom Bush is referring was part of a pretty horrific double murder back in 1999. Bernard and his accomplice, Christopher Vialva, were in Killeen, Texas, where they met Iowa youth ministers Todd and Stacie Bagley. The two men had asked the couple for a ride but then locked them in the trunk of their car at gunpoint.
They drove around for hours with the Bagleys in the trunk, stopping to try to pawn the woman’s wedding ring and take whatever valuables they could find inside the vehicle.
Vialva and Bernard then parked the car on the Fort Hood military reservation and Vialva shot both of the Bagleys in the head. Bernard then set the car on fire.
Law Enforcement Today
New 'Squad' member Cori Bush wants Biden to grant clemency to all federal death-row inmates
Missouri Democrat Cori Bush says Joe Biden has responsibility to end death penalty, saying he must stop nation’s 'dark history of lynching and slavery.'
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TRAFFIC ALERT: SkyFOX reports a multi-car crash on the northbound 405 Freeway in Long Beach.
Meanwhile, in Seattle. In anticipation of an encampment sweep, a fire has been set in Cal Anderson Park.
Meanwhile, in LA. Downtown Los Angeles... Shipping containers being turned into housing for homeless.
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Senator Hawley: "74 million Americans are not going to shut up. It's not a recipe for success in this country, nor for unity."
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WARNING! GRAPHIC CONTENT! Lane County DA: Eugene police officers justified in use of deadly force on Muhsin Sharif, releases video footage. About two weeks after Eugene Police Department officers shot a man armed with a knife in a Whiteaker neighborhood, the Lane County District Attorney's office ruled the use of deadly force lawful. Eugene police officers Ryan Trullinger and Bo Rankin, who fired the shots at the suspect, Muhsin Sharif, on Nov. 30, were justified in their response, Lane County District Attorney Patty Perlow announced in a Tuesday news release. Police fired a total of eight shots, Sharif was struck twice, once in the upper left chest and once in his left hip. (Read the full story.)
BREAKING: Project Veritas releases Assange-U.S. State Dept. call recording. The investigative activist group Project Veritas has released a recording of a call that allegedly took place between Wikileaks founder Julian Assange and Cliff Johnson, a lawyer representing the then-Hillary Clinton run U.S. State Department. In the audio, Assange can be heard providing a warning to authorities about a pending leak of classified information. On the call, purported to be from August 26, 2011, Assange explains that Wikileaks had learned that 250,000 communications from the State Department Database Archive had been disseminated around parts of the internet, and that they would become publicly available at some point "imminently, or within the next few days to a week.” (Read more.)
Olympia, WA – The Washington State Patrol has confirmed there was a second shot fired during a prolonged, expansive, and often-armed clash between groups with opposing political views this past Saturday on and near the Capitol Campus, and is seeking the public’s help in identifying the second shooter. The second shot occurred shortly after and in the immediate vicinity as the first shooting and it appears that the shooter is a member of the opposing group from the first shooter. There are no reports of additional injuries associated with the second shooting. After reviewing video posted on social media, WSP is seeking the public’s help in identifying the person in the photos below and video attached. The photo quality is poor, but anyone who has information, and/or additional video or photographs pertaining to the moments immediately prior to the second shooting, the shooter, or the possible target should contact Detective Sergeant Matt Wood at 360-704-2955 or sistips@wsp.wa.gov