The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“EXECUTION OF TIMOTHY McVEIGH” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the Senate section on pages S6052 on June 11, 2001.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
EXECUTION OF TIMOTHY McVEIGH
Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, on this day, my thoughts are with the victims of Timothy McVeigh, and with their families. I hope that the spectacle of these last few weeks, leading to this execution, has not caused them further pain. McVeigh was cowardly and cruel, and I shall not dwell upon his memory or indulge his desire to be seen as a martyr. I rise today to speak on his execution not because I wish to add to the burdens of this day, but because I do not want it said that those of us who oppose the death penalty stood silently by.
Today, the question we need to ask is not: Was McVeigh a despicable killer, of course he was.
Rather, the questions we should ask are these: Does the death penalty serve us and our best American ideals, does it always serve justice, is it administered fairly, is it sometimes imposed upon people who are innocent.
The records will note that the cause of McVeigh's death was homicide, the intentional killing of one human being by another. The execution of even this most notorious murderer should prompt us anew to reconsider the idea of our government killing people in our name, and perhaps to begin to acknowledge the growing American belief that the time has come to stop and learn the answers to the questions that plague the death penalty, before we proceed with any further executions.
We have an opportunity to turn another way on the death penalty. The next scheduled federal execution is that of Juan Raul Garza. His execution has been stayed until June 19 in light of the questions raised about regional and racial disparities in the federal death penalty system.
But the Justice Department now has declared that it will not wait until those questions are answered by an ongoing National Institute of Justice study before proceeding with his execution. They have gone so far as to declare that there is no bias in the system, even though the study has not come close to completion. Until we are certain of the fairness of the process and these questions are resolved, Garza should not be executed in our name. That's the real and difficult test that President Bush and Attorney General Ashcroft must face in the next few days. On this day, I hope that they will turn to it in earnest.
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