Billion in the news about his death penalty stance again. Despite the fact it continues to change.
Capital punishment has become an issue in the 2006 race for governor.You can read it all here. And again, I'd point out that this stands in opposition to a previous statement made on the Death Penalty where in an April forum in Spearfish, Billion stated:On Aug. 29, Rounds stopped the execution of Elijah Page, who had asked to die for his role in a torture slaying near Spearfish in 2000. “I believe in the death penalty,” the Republican governor said at an event in Spearfish late last week.
Morally, the death penalty is the right punishment in many situations, Gov. Mike Rounds said.
His Democratic opponent, Jack Billion, said his own views are clearer and better thought out than Rounds’ are, even though Billion said he has conflicting feelings about the death penalty.and..
Billion said if he were governor, he would be willing to allow executions despite his personal feelings about the death penalty’s effectiveness. Because South Dakota supports the death penalty, Billion said he would allow it to be implemented.
“Right now, I think the death penalty is a worthwhile alternative,” Billion said. However, he said, “I’m not totally convinced it’s a deterrent.”Billion, a retired orthopedic surgeon, said that allowing capital punishment is not in conflict with the Hippocratic Oath that physicians take because the person being executed would not be a patient of his.
With two young men currently on death row in South Dakota, one member inquired about Billion's thoughts on the death penalty. Billion said because state money is spent on the appeal process, he is against it.Read that all of that article here.
From being against it to "a worthwhile alternative." Gosh, that's so much clearer and better thought out, how can he be 18 points down?
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Rounds view is "I am for the death penalty; I think it is moral in certain cases." What can be clearer than that?