In this week's episode of Snollygoster, Ohio's politics podcast from WOSU, hosts Mike Thompson and Steve Brown discuss the conservative movement to end the death penalty, an effort that usually gets support from liberal activists. Josh Culling of the group Conservatives Concerned About The Death Penalty joins the show.
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In this week's episode:
Death To The Death Penalty
Traditionally, it's been the "tough on crime" Republicans that have kept capital punishment in the criminal justice system. Ohio has executed 56 people since it resumed the practice in 1999, but limited access to the drugs needed for lethal injection has been an insumountable roadblock.
In recent years, conservative thinking on this issue has started to change. Many Republicans are now endorsing the end of the death penalty, citing the high costs on the lenghty appeals process, uneven implementation among different socio-economic groups, the number of known wrongful executions, and consistency with their pro-life position.
Meanwhile, Gov. Mike DeWine continues to delay upcoming execution dates, and the state hasn't carried out an execution since July 2018.
Bloomberg's Disastrous Debut
Thursday night's Democratic debate did not go well for billionaire and former New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg. It's no surprise that other candidiates went after him on his support of "stop and frisk" policing, allegations of inappropriate language in the workplace, and his tax returns, but Bloomberg seemed unable to effectively answer tough questions.
Snollygoster Of The Week
Snollygoster has poked fun at politicians in the past for declaring their candidacy for a new office a little too early. This week, Cincinnati's Democratic mayor John Cranley joins that club. Though the election for Ohio's next governor is nearly three years away, Cranley already launched his 2022 campaign.
Send questions and comments to snollygoster@wosu.org.
