Opportunity Knocks: Looks Like Willie Horton Comes In Handy Again
Remember when the left had a field day calling Republicans racists for daring to mention a convicted felon by name? Al Gore brought up the issue, and rightfully so, during 1988 Democratic primary. He attacked Michael Dukakis over the Massachusetts furlough program, which granted convicted murderers such as Horton, weekend furloughs. While out of jail one weekend, Horton raped a woman, beat her fiancé and then stole their car. Enter Lee Atwater! A man that probably had more influence on the reshaping of American politics than any other individual. His career, like his life, was brief but, also like his life, it was tumultuous and eventful. So why are we talking about Willie Horton and Lee Atwater?
Documents Expose Huckabee’s Role In Serial Rapist’s Release
As governor of Arkansas, Mike Huckabee aggressively pushed for the early release of a convicted rapist despite being warned by numerous women that the convict had sexually assaulted them or their family members, and would likely strike again.
On the face of it, it looks horrible, right? Could politics have played a roll? Well via TPM, I got this link to HuffPo:
In 1996, as a newly elected governor who had received strong support from the Christian right, Huckabee was under intense pressure from conservative activists to pardon Dumond or commute his sentence. The activists claimed that Dumond’s initial imprisonment and various other travails were due to the fact that Ashley Stevens, the high school cheerleader he had raped, was a distant cousin of Bill Clinton, and the daughter of a major Clinton campaign contributor.
The case for Dumond’s innocence was championed in Arkansas by Jay Cole, a Baptist minister and radio host who was a close friend of the Huckabee family. It also became a cause for New York Post columnist Steve Dunleavy, who repeatedly argued for Dumond’s release, calling his conviction “a travesty of justice.” On Sept. 21, 1999, Dunleavy wrote a column headlined “Clinton’s Biggest Crime – Left Innocent Man In Jail For 14 Years”:
“Dumond, now 52, was given conditional parole yesterday in Arkansas after having being sentenced to 50 years in jail for the rape of Clinton’s cousin,” Dunleavy wrote. “That rape never happened.”
It does look damning. Via Hot Air, please read this for comprehensive analysis of the situation, as well as this piece from Byron York.
Now, in both situations, Horton and Dumond’s, killers were released to the public and more crimes happened. We should know about these things and we should be following up to assure that there are policies in place to prevent this kind of thing from happening. Did politics come into play with regards to Dukakis and Huckabee’s actions? Only they know for sure. What I do know is that both in 1988 and 2007, the issue is relevant to the campaign.
December 6, 2007 - 02:04 PM on December 6th, 2007
MIKE HUCKBEE PUSHED FOR THE RELEASE OF A KNOWN RAPISTS DESPITE THE FACT HE WAS ADANGER TO WOMEN AND NOW HE IS RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT NOW DO WE WANT ANOTHER SOFT ON CRIME PANTY WASTE IN THE WHITEHOUSE?
December 7, 2007 - 05:02 AM on December 7th, 2007
[...] Add that to he has an apparent clemency fetish. In particular he’s being pummeled for the pardon of a convicted murderer who went on to kill again; a case that’s being called Huckabee’s Willie Horton moment. [...]