Fear of Crime not playing a central role in 2008 presidential election

Barack Obama listens to a briefing by New York City police officers in their Real Time Crime Center at their headquarters in New York City.

Barack Obama listens to a briefing by New York City police officers in their Real Time Crime Center at their headquarters in New York City.

We’re about 72 hours from election day and here’s an article by the New York Times on the presidential candidates’ stance on crime. This article follows the article we published earlier in the week that reported that the candidates’ stance has not been clearly articulated and discussed during the campaign.

In past elections, bringing up the “tough-on-crime” card spurred Republican support. During the 1988 campaign between Vice President George H. Bush and Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis, for example, notorious attack ads depicted Dukakis as weak on crime by showing prisoners going in and out of jail. The most controversial element of the ads was the story of Willie Horton, an  African-American prisoner  who committed a terrible crime while furloughed. The ad played to mainstream America’s racial prejudices and fear.

The Times article takes a look at John McCain’s and Barack Obama’s history on the crime and why, 20 years after the “Willie Horton” ads, it has not been discussed much:

But compared with many past presidential elections, Mr. Obama and Mr. McCain have paid little attention to issues of criminal justice as they compete for the White House.

The change is a reflection, experts say, of 15 years of declining crime rates, an electorate less anxious about public safety and the fact that crime and law enforcement issues are less partisan than they used to be.

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS: Are you considering the candidates’ views on incarceration and criminal justice in your voting decision? Which way are you leaning and why?

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About Sandeep Junnarkar

Sandeep Junnarkar is the founder and editorial director of Family Lives Behind Bars.