A spokesperson for President-elect Trump criticized President Biden’s decision to commute the death sentences of 37 inmates on federal death row, calling it a “a slap in the face to the victims, their families, and their loved ones.”
Steven Cheung, Trump’s communications director, emphasized the difference in approaches to crime between Biden and Trump in a brief statement.
“These are among the worst killers in the world, and this abhorrent decision by Joe Biden is a slap in the face to the victims, their families, and their loved ones,” he said. “President Trump stands for the rule of law, which will be reinstated when he returns to the White House after being elected with a massive mandate from the American people.”
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Social media reacted strongly after President Biden announced the commutation of nearly all federal death row inmates. (AP )
The White House stated that Biden commuted the death sentences to life without parole on Monday. Among the 37 men are victims like law enforcement officers, children, and other inmates.
Senator Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., expressed disappointment in Biden’s decision, stating, “Biden’s decision is a slap in the face to the victims and their families who expected justice.”
Many other Republican lawmakers shared similar sentiments.
Biden’s administration believes the federal death penalty should only apply to acts of terrorism and hate-motivated killings, according to the White House.
“When President Biden took office, his Administration halted federal executions, and his actions today will prevent the next Administration from carrying out execution sentences that would not align with current policy and practice,” the White House said.
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Three federal inmates whose death sentences were not commuted are Robert Bowers, responsible for the mass shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in 2018; Dylann Roof, a White supremacist who killed nine Black parishioners in 2015; and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, involved in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing.
Biden noted that this move would prevent the incoming Trump administration from carrying out these executions.
“In good conscience, I cannot stand back and let a new administration resume executions that I halted,” he said.
The action followed Biden’s commutation of nearly 1,500 prisoners placed under home confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic and pardoning 40 others, including his son, Hunter.
As of December 13, Biden has pardoned a total of 65 individuals and commuted sentences for 1,634 inmates during his presidency, according to the Department of Justice.
Hunter Biden smiles leaving an Arby’s in Santa Barbara on Wednesday, December 4, 2024, marking his first appearance since being pardoned by his father, President Joe Biden. (The Image Direct for Fox News Digital)
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“The President has issued more sentence commutations at this point in his presidency than any of his recent predecessors at the same point in their first terms,” White House officials stated previously.
Trump has advocated for the death penalty, suggesting that drug dealers should face it. “We’re going to be asking everyone who sells drugs, gets caught selling drugs, to receive the death penalty for their heinous acts,” Trump mentioned during his campaign. “Because it’s the only way.”
