What do Mississippi, Wyoming and New Hampshire have in common? Their senators are men of principle and none of them are inclined to support a resolution apologizing for the Senate's failure to make lynching a federal crime.
Their position may be valid, since the resolution recently approved by a voice vote, in the dead of night, doesn't make it a crime now, either.
But, their principled position might carry more weight, if they'd actually introduced legislation to make lynching a federal crime, along with a whole slew of ad hoc abuses of human rights that seem to be rampant in our state and federal prisons.
If the vile treatment of captives in Guantanamo and Iraq isn't universally recognized as torture, it may well be because similar behavior is par for the course here at home.
On the other hand, Judd Gregg's explanation that his failure to object to the resolution shows that he's for it is not encouraging. Applying this line of reasoning to the subject of the resolution would suggest that the failure to speak out against lynching means he supports it.
Posted by Hannah at June 20, 2005 02:46 PM