Alabama Attorney General Debate
Posted by BrianI’ll start off by saying that Troy King came across much better than I expected, but then again I wasn’t expecting much. I thought both men comported themselves appropriately for the tough guy position of Attorney General. Tyson attacked King early and often about being inexperienced. King tried to label Tyson as inexperienced, but that approach didn’t stick in my mind - although I did find it somewhat amusing.
Both men provided relevant responses to all questions, which was refreshing after watching an hour and a half of banal, elusive non-answers. Deciding who won this debate really comes down to one’s philosophical belief. If you favor a lock ‘em up and throw away the key approach then you would have been impressed with King. If you favor a prevention and rehabilitation approach then you would have deemed Tyson the winner.
One of the more contrasting topics was capital punishment for serial rapists. Tyson does not favor executing serial rapists because he asserts that it encourages the rapist to cross the threshold to become a murderer because they have nothing to lose at that point. King says that the crimes committed by a serial rapist are equivalent to murder and the punishment should fit the crime. I’m torn on whose side I take (and I am a staunch proponent of the death penalty). Tyson’s logic is compelling, but it is predicated on the presumption that serial rapists act as rational human beings in as much as they weigh the potential punishment before they choose to commit a crime. I don’t think that is the case. Someone who is depraved enough to serially rape cannot be expected to say to themselves, “Gosh, this string of rapes is going to keep me locked up for the rest of my life, but I don’t want to kill this victim because I’ll face the chair.”
Tyson mocked King for touting his own crime prevention program while he decried Tyson’s similar programs as “social engineering.” I may be wrong, but I don’t think King brought up any of Tyson’s crime prevention programs after that.
If forced to pick a winner I would probably side with Tyson. He did a good job of highlighting his experience, but more importantly, he did a very good job of deftly fending off attacks relating to plea bargains and alleged selective prosecution.
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October 31st, 2006 at 12:33 am
[...] Tuesday, October 31, 2006 F/U to the AG debate Dan on 2006-10-31 @ 12:33 am I think Brian at Flashpoint is correct: Deciding who won this debate really comes down to one’s philosophical belief. If you favor a lock ‘em up and throw away the key approach then you would have been impressed with King. If you favor a prevention and rehabilitation approach then you would have deemed Tyson the winner. Filed under Elections permalink :: email author :: no comments [...]
October 31st, 2006 at 11:34 am
I thought the debate was very good — the candidates were articulate and defended themselves fairly well. Their presentations were as contrasting as their positions: Mr. Tyson, with his exhorting style and Mr. King with his studied calm. I don’t think either won a decisive victory, but they each scored points. I do feel compelled to point out that Mr. King needs to do something about those shoulderpads. They don’t make him look more substantial.
October 31st, 2006 at 12:26 pm
Brian, you say with regard to Tyson’s position on the Death Penalty for serial rapists,
“Tyson’s logic is compelling, but it is predicated on the presumption that serial rapists act as rational human beings in as much as they weigh the potential punishment before they choose to commit a crime. I don’t think that is the case.”
King’s approach relies on the same logic. King says “punishment is the deterent for crime.” That is why he ridicules Tyson’s efforts to stop crime before it happens. That is also his rationale for giving serial rapists the Death Penalty: if they know they are going to get the chair, they won’t rape. That logic is flawed. A serial rapist will rape, regardless of punishment. Tyson makes a good point in saying that a serial rapist won’t necessarily kill, but he may if he knows he’ll get the chair regardless.
I, like Tyson, would rather get my wife and daughter back and deal with the aftermath. A serial rapist gets life in prison without the possibility of parole anyway.