What they say: “Regardless of the controversy around the method of execution, I hope people don’t forget that this is a guy who brutally murdered many innocent people,” Vance told reporters Friday.
- “Now, having said that, I mean, look, if it’s all live, I’m not going to watch it.”
Driving the news: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in an interview Thursday that Americans could witness the execution of Nidal Hasan, convicted of killing 13 people in the 2009 mass shooting.
- “We’ll make sure people can watch it… people need to understand that these kinds of things have serious consequences,” he said.
- The AP later reported that the execution would be broadcast live.
- If this goes ahead, Hasan’s execution will be the first public execution in 90 years and the first military execution since 1961.
Zoom: Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) condemned the plan to make the execution public in an X-rated post Thursday evening.
- “Hasan should face the death penalty, but make his execution public and stream it? Beyond disgusting. Public executions are what oppressive dictatorships like Iran and Afghanistan do. This should not happen in America,” the outgoing senator said.
- Utah Sen. John Curtis (R) said in an article that “(b)announcing a death diminishes us and is not an effective deterrent.”
- “A civilization erodes when it cultivates an appetite for executions as a form of entertainment. Secretary Hegseth’s plan to livestream the Fort Hood execution risks fueling that appetite. Victims deserve justice to be solemnly administered.”
The other side: Some GOP politicians, like Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.), welcomed the live broadcast.
- “Excellent. Public execution is what this terrorist deserves. We will watch him,” he said in a message on X.
Editor’s note: This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
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