And another thing …
And the truth shall make you free. Evangelist Pat Robertson, the former Republican presidential candidate who carried Washington state’s 1988 caucuses, is backpeddling from his call for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
It’s a stretch, but he’s making it.
During his “700 Club” television program, Robertson was talking about Chavez and his anti-American tirades, including claims that the United States is out to get him. If that’s the way he feels, Robertson suggested, why not oblige him?
Wednesday, under a barrage of criticism, Robertson said it was all a misunderstanding. He had said American special forces should “take him (Chavez) out,” he explained, and that could have meant a number of things.
For instance, Robertson said, “take him out” could have meant to kidnap the South American leader. True. For that matter it could have meant asking him out for a movie and a milkshake, but it didn’t. Let’s return to the comment at the heart of the controversy:
“I don’t know about this doctrine of assassination, but if he thinks we’re trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it.”
As Bill Clinton might have said, it depends on what “it” is.
Justice delayed. Kootenai County Prosecutor Bill Douglas didn’t have a difficult decision to make in seeking the death penalty if Joseph Edward Duncan III is found guilty of the murders and kidnappings of Brenda Groene and her family. After all, the suspect is accused of premeditation in the awful murders of three family members, the sexual abuse and murder of a fourth, and the horrific treatment of young survivor Shasta Groene.
Only the most die-hard opponents of capital punishment would deny that if there’s ever a case for execution, those crimes qualify.
However, neither side in the struggle over the death penalty should get too excited about the prosecutor’s decision. Even in a red-meat state like Idaho, few convicted killers are executed. If found guilty, Duncan is likely to still be gobbling three square meals a day at the Idaho State Penitentiary 20 years from now. The key at this point for the prosecutor is to make sure he tries the best case possible to ensure that justice is served for the victims in these crimes.