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Mike Huckabee
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Tyler Overman: Hi. This is
Tyler Overman from Memphis, Tennessee. And I have a quick question for those of
you who would call yourselves Christian conservatives. The death penalty, what
would Jesus do?
Cooper: Governor Huckabee?
Huckabee: You know, one of the toughest challenges that I ever faced as
a governor was carrying out the death penalty. I did it more than any other
governor ever had to do it in my state. As I look on this stage, I'm pretty sure
that I'm the only person on this stage that's ever had to actually do it.
Let me
tell you, it was the toughest decision I ever made as a human-being. I read
every page of every document of every case that ever came before me, because it
was the one decision that came to my desk that, once I made it, was
irrevocable.
Every
other decision, somebody else could go back and overturn, could fix if it was a
mistake. That was one that was irrevocable.
I believe
there is a place for a death penalty. Some crimes are so heinous, so horrible
that the only response that we, as a civilized nation, have for a most uncivil
action is not only to try to deter that person from ever committing that crime
again, but also as a warning to others that some crimes truly are beyond any
other capacity for us to fix.
(Applause)
Now,
having said that, there are those who say, "How can you be pro-life and
believe in the death penalty?"
Because
there's a real difference between the process of adjudication, where a person is
deemed guilty after a thorough judicial process and is put to death by all of
us, as citizens, under a law, as opposed to an individual making a decision to
terminate a life that has never been deemed guilty because the life never was
given a chance to even exist.
Cooper: Governor?
Huckabee: That's the
fundamental difference.
(Applause)
Cooper: I do have to though
press the question, which -- the question was, from the viewer was? What would
Jesus do? Would Jesus support the death penalty?
Huckabee: Jesus was too smart
to ever run for public office, Anderson. That's what Jesus would do.
(Applause)
Cooper: Congressman
Tancredo, 30 seconds.
Tancredo: The question is: What would Jesus do? Well, I'll tell you
this. I would pray to him for the wisdom and the courage to do the right thing.
And I believe that with prayer, he would give it to me.
And I
believe that justice was done in the situations that the governor has
explained. And, as I say, I look to him for guidance in all those kinds of
situations.
