The ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) has approximately 300,000 members nationwide and is based on strict adherence to federal and state constitutions and their Bill of Rights. The ACLU believes that capital punishment violates the Constitutional prohibitions on cruel and unusual punishment and equal protection of the laws (aclu.org). The ACLU is extremely influential because it has been around for more than 80 years and is a highly respected organization.

Concerning this issue, the ACLU has been involved in lobbying efforts to create a moratorium (temporary suspension) on executions. The proposed bill, "National Death Penalty Moratorium Act of 2001," has been sponsored by Democratic Senator Russell Feingold and co-sponsored by Senator Jon Corzine, Richard Durbin, Carl Levin and Paul Wellstone (thomas.loc.

The third recent bill that was reviewed in Congress is the Innocence Protection Act of 2001 sponsored by Dianne Feinstein, also a member of the Judiciary Committee. This Act makes the investigative process more accurate by requiring DNA evidence to prove the accused as guilty (capwiz.com), and gives more rights to the accused so that their rights are not violated in the process. The hopes of this bill is to make the process stricter so that the innocent do not end up paying their life for a crime they did not commit.

Generally, conservatives tend to be in favor of the death penalty because of traditional Christian beliefs that justify the practice of it in the Bible. "Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed" (Genesis 9:6). But in the 21st century, we are starting to see politics shift more towards the middle. It is difficult to find interests groups that have a direct relation to being in favor of capital punishment because capital punishment is already legal in 38 state

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