Originally posted by FizzingWhizzbees:
(I'm openly stating that I disagree with Ashcroft's politics so this post is not going to be overhwelmingly positive about the man. However, I'll give some of my thoughts anyway.)
He's a very right-wing, conservative Republican. He's anti-choice, opposes gun control, opposes affirmative action, opposes gay rights, is in favour of the death penalty. Basically everything you would expect from a very conservative politician.
He's strongly anti-choice on abortion - he even opposes abortion in the case of rape or incest and he also believes that 'life begins at conception' which implies he disagrees with the use of birth control pills and emergency contraception.
During his confirmation hearings there were allegations of racism against him. While he was governor of Missouri he blocked the appointment of a black judge, and he's made some comments in praise of those who fought for the Confederacy in the Civil War. He also fought against a voter registration campaign in St Louis which coincidentally has a large black and traditionally Democrat-voting population.
While he was governor of Missouri, 7 people were executed in his state. He voted in favour of restricting people's access to appeal against a death sentence. Also he's in favour of extending the "war against drugs" and he wants stronger sentencing for those convicted of drug-related offences.
On the environment, he's in favour of allowing oil companies to drill for oil in Alaska. On defence, foreign policy, he's in favour of high military spending, and opposed to high foreign aid budgets.
Gun control, he's in favour of allowing people to carry concealed weapons, he's against any kind of background check including at gun shows.
And I'll be quiet now because there is a lot more I would like to say about Ashcroft, but I'm sure there are people who support him and would like to have their say too.
A few things of interest:
* Note that Ashcroft is "anti-choice, opposes gun control, opposes affirmative action," instead of "pro-life, defends the second amendment, and doesn't believe that once race should be favored over another."
* Apparently "he also believes that 'life begins at conception' which implies he disagrees with the use of birth control pills and emergency contraception." First, birth control pills prevent conception from the beginning, so believing that life begins at conception DOESN'T imply opposition to birth control pills. Second, "emergency contraception" is a euphamism for abortion - preventing pregnancy after the fact.
* He's a conservative Republican; I'd be surprised if allegations of racism WEREN'T levelled at him. By the way, opposing a black judge doesn't make you a racist, since you can have GENUINE reasons to oppose him. Acknowledging that Confederate troops weren't the scum of the earth also isn't racism. And resisting a voter registration campaign in a heavily Democratic area doesn't make you a racist - it makes you a politically savvy Republican.
* In terms of gun control, I haven't heard he's against all background checks; if he genuinely is, then I have reason to disagree with him on that point.
* Finally, you gave a list of reasons to hate the guy:
While he was governor of Missouri, 7 people were executed in his state. He voted in favour of restricting people's access to appeal against a death sentence. Also he's in favour of extending the "war against drugs" and he wants stronger sentencing for those convicted of drug-related offences.
On the environment, he's in favour of allowing oil companies to drill for oil in Alaska. On defence, foreign policy, he's in favour of high military spending, and opposed to high foreign aid budgets.
Well, I have my reasons to like the guy:
When he was governor of Missouri, seven convicted killers were made incapable of killing again. He's in favor of limiting the amount of times a killer can appeal his sentence, limiting it to something more reasonable, allowing the victim's family the chance to move on. He's in favor of severely punishing those who traffic large amounts of illegal and dangerous drugs to America's children and teenagers.
On the issue of energy, he believes that America is entirely too dependent on ambivalent states for our supply of oil. And on foreign policy, he supports that bit in the Constitution that says the government should "ensure domestic tranquilty, provide for the common defense."