President Biden is running out of time to fulfill his 2020 presidential campaign promise to abolish the federal death penalty. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
In January 2021, Biden initially considered an executive order, people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press, but the White House did not issue one.
It also did not push Congress for legislation barring it.
Six months into the administration, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced a moratorium on federal capital punishment to study it further. The narrow action has meant there have been no federal executions under Biden, but it simply put the death penalty on a temporary hold.
A White House spokesperson told Fox News Digital that Biden remains concerned about how federal executions are applied.
"The President has long talked about his concerns about how the death penalty is applied and whether it is consistent with the values fundamental to our sense of justice and fairness," said White House assistant press secretary Robyn Patterson. "He supports the attorney general’s decision to issue a moratorium on federal executions while the Department of Justice conducts a comprehensive review of the practice."
President Biden is the first president to openly oppose capital punishment. (Leigh Vogel/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Whether Biden intends to act on the death penalty before November is not immediately clear, although such action is not usually pursued in an election year. Additionally, Biden does not discuss the death penalty much today.
Some Biden supporters have been left frustrated as the president has been empty-handed on executions.
Conversely, Trump has consistently vowed in campaign speeches across the country to implement capital punishment against those who sell or transport deadly fentanyl as part of his national crackdown on crime.
"It’s always been used as a political talking point. It has for centuries, and it probably always will be," said Robin Maher, executive director of the nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center. "But I think the American public is seeing through that now and is really looking for more serious answers to these very serious problems in our communities."
According to Gallup, support for the death penalty has continued to fall over the last 30 years.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
In 1994, 80% supported executions for convicted killers. This support has fallen to 53% last year. In November, Gallup found in a separate poll that a majority of Americans believe the death penalty is unfairly applied, 50% to 47%.
In addition to the federal government, 21 states allow the death penalty.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more Fox News politics content.
Subscribed
You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter!
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/biden-running-time-fulfill-2020-campaign-pledge-abolish-federal-death-penalty