Okay, Mr. Sumner has mentioned Pawlenty's "true leadership" enough that he has baited me into a response. Pawlenty's call for the death penalty came at a time when a notorious sexual assault dominated the local and national headlines: talk about "playing politics." On top of that, Mr. Sumner concedes that he's not even sure he agrees with the Governor on this issue. For good reason--the death penalty has proven to be racist, error-prone, and very expensive, which is why states that have it are backing off. (See the article by my City Pages colleague Paul Demko for more details http://citypages.com/databank/24/1201/article11726.asp) So where's the leadership? The position Sumner supports--longer and/or permanent sentencing of repeat offenders, has been put forth by both the DFL and IR caucuses, not Pawlenty. We know that the majority of chronic sexual offenders grew up with violence in the home. During the last session, Pawlenty's budget made significant cuts in battered women's shelters, crisis nurseries, daycare, early childhood education, and a raft of other programs that help kids in troubled homes. The Pawlenty budget also cut funding for police departments to keep better tabs on sexual offenders as they move from one part of the state to another. This is part of the fiscal conservatism that Sumner has championed so consistently on this list, and used to bludgeon the policies of Minneapolis politicians by comparison. He can't have it both ways.
Britt Robson Lyndale ----- Original Message ----- From: "Steve Sumner" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Minneapolis Issues" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Thursday, December 18, 2003 7:58 AM Subject: FW: [Mpls] re: Council passes budget 11-2; Praising R.T.;Unfunded Mandates;a nd Homeless issues: keep your eye on the ball > Regarding Wizard's comments: > As I have stated I not sure that I'd support the death plenty on sexual > crimes, maybe no chance for release instead. In the Sjodin, if there > wouldn't have been any chance for him to get out he wouldn't have been able > to commit this crime because he is a repeat offender. > As for the Governor, stop playing politics and look at what he is trying to > do. He is trying to prevent repeat offenders by making sure they never get > the chance. Sorry if you 't realize that, but he is displaying true > leadership. > Steve Sumner > Waite Park > > > REMINDERS: > 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. > 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. > > For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html > For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract > ________________________________ > > Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy > Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
