Dems Split on Death Penalty in Debate

[rodbarnett]

LOS ANGELES - Democratic rivals John Kerry (news - web sites) and John Edwards (news - web sites) differed on the use of the death penalty Thursday night, but found common ground in opposing gay marriage in a debate five days before the biggest primary night of the campaign season.


Confronted with a question about a child killer, Kerry said his instinct "is to want to strangle that person with my own hands." But the Massachusetts senator, a former prosecutor, quickly added that he favors the death penalty only for cases of terrorism.


Edwards, a Southern-bred politician, differed, saying there are other crimes that "deserve the ultimate punishment." He cited as an example the killers of James Byrd, a black man who was dragged to death from a pickup truck in 1998 in Texas.


On the day that celebrity Rosie O'Donnell was married to her longtime girlfriend, both presidential hopefuls voiced opposition to gay marriages. At the same time, they said the issue should be left to the states and criticized President Bush (news - web sites) for calling for a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex union

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040227/ap_on_el_pr/democrats&cid=694&ncid=716