One of the aspects of George W. Bush’s political career I have long found troubling has been his evident comfort – even enthusiasm – for the death penalty. As governor of Texas, he didn’t have much power to prevent the extraordinary number of executions in his home state – but he did have a chance to demonstrate his concern for human life by reviewing each case very carefully. He didn’t. And a critical enabler of this insouciance toward human life was Alberto Gonzales, whose work on the legal memos for the then-governor has been criticized as shoddy, peremptory and incomplete. I respect those who defend the death penalty in necessity, even though I cannot morally acquiesce to it in any circumstances. But the blitheness of Bush’s and Gonzales’ treatment of the issue is surely troubling for those who are pro-life. Here is a man implicated in two policies anathema to serious Catholics. He gave legal sanction to torture – an absolute moral evil – and glibly facilitated the executions of dozens. Why are pro-life writers apparently untroubled by these facts? Or have I missed some out there?
ATTENTION STANLEY KURTZ! Finally, conclusive proof that marriage equality leads to the breakdown of heterosexual marriage.
The Dish 