Van Jones: This Death Penalty Thing Is a Complete Nonstarter and It’s Divisive and It’s Stupid

EXCERPT:

JONES: "I don’t know where he’s getting that stuff. That is — that is 180 degrees from what the people on the ground are saying. They’re saying people need more help, more compassion, more education. Sometimes they say they need more — better Bible studies. That would be higher on the list than death penalty for drug dealers. And that’s the kind of stuff that becomes a poison pill for people who are on the ground and know what’s going on and people who understand the drug war is a failure and it’s going to stop us from working together. If he would take that crap out and focus on what the people on the front lines, they need more beds, they need more help, they need more hope, they need more jobs. Like I said, they need more Bible study. All that’s on the list. This death penalty thing is a complete nonstarter and it’s divisive and it’s stupid. I think it’s an offense to the people who are really trying to solve this problem."