(DC Pundit) – President Joe Biden is reportedly considering an astonishing grand finale to his presidency. The 82-year-old commander-in-chief is mulling over the idea of commuting sentences for some – or possibly all – of the 40 men currently lounging on federal death row. Talk about going out with a bang, or in this case, a whimper from those who support capital punishment.
This potential act of clemency isn’t just causing a stir; it’s whipping up a political tornado that could make Dorothy’s trip to Oz look like a gentle breeze. The list of potential beneficiaries reads like a who’s who of America’s most wanted, including individuals convicted of crimes that would make even the most hardened true crime podcast host squirm.
Among the rogues’ gallery are Dylann Roof, the Charleston church shooter; Iouri Mikhel, mastermind of a gruesome kidnapping-for-ransom scheme; Thomas Sanders, convicted for the death of a 12-year-old girl; and Daniel Troya, responsible for drug-related child murders.
We can only hope there are a couple of bad apples that even Biden might not bite into. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the Boston Marathon bomber, and Robert Bowers, perpetrator of the Tree of Life synagogue attack. Let’s pray that these criminals remain firmly on the “naughty list.”
JUST IN: President Joe Biden is considering commuting the sentences for all 40 individuals on de*th row, according to the Wall Street Journal.
This includes Boston Bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.
"President Biden is considering commuting the sentences of most, if not all, of the 40… pic.twitter.com/r1sl1RJPV5
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) December 21, 2024
This potential Christmas gift to death row inmates comes hot on the heels of Biden’s controversial decision to commute the sentence of Shanlin Jin, a Chinese citizen who pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography. That move had President-elect Donald Trump fuming faster than a kettle on full boil.
The White House is playing its cards close to the chest, with a spokesperson cryptically stating that no final decision has been made. Meanwhile, the Justice Department is maintaining silent.
Biden’s potential death penalty pirouette represents a stark 180 from his Senate days when he was more pro-death penalty than a Game of Thrones script writer. His 2020 campaign promise to abolish the federal death penalty never materialized into law, but Attorney General Merrick Garland managed to throw a wrench in the execution works with a moratorium to study death penalty procedures.
Republicans, predictably, are having a collective conniption fit. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, in a floor speech that could curl wallpaper, accused Biden of prioritizing “progressive politics” over justice for murder victims.
According to October 2024 Gallup polling, 53% of Americans still favor the death penalty – a number that’s been holding steadier than a surgeon’s hand. But support has been shifting among Democrats and Independents.
Despite the controversy, Biden’s already flexed his clemency muscles, commuting sentences for 1,500 people and pardoning 39 others in a single day.
As the clock ticks down on Biden’s presidency, all eyes are on the White House, waiting to see if he’ll grant clemency to some of America’s most notorious criminals, or will he let sleeping dogs (and death row inmates) lie?
In the meantime, victims’ families hold their breath. Whatever Biden decides, it’s bound to be a decision that’ll be debated longer than the plot of “Inception.”
Will it be a happy ending for death row inmates, or will justice prevail as some see it?
Copyright 2024. DCPundit.com | Featured image credit: Pexels
