Sen. Amy Klobuchar says she “worked really hard” to address systematic racism, but “there is so much more work that we have to do.”
Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar on ABC's "The View," touted herself as the most moderate candidate who can relate to voters on a personal level, unlike President Donald Trump, who she says "lacks decency."
"I think we've got a guy in the White House that lacks decency," Klobuchar told the hosts on Tuesday. "He can’t put himself in their shoes. I can."
The Minnesota senator and 2020 presidential candidate went on, "I'm the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from my state, and I have had to work hard like so many Americans to the place I got. That’s the case I made."
Klobuchar also said, unlike some of her opponents, she thinks she’s capable of bringing together different coalitions of voters.
"I'm someone that looks people in the eye and tells them the truth, and I don't have everyone agree with me when I do that," Klobuchar said. "But one of the reasons I have been able to bring in independents and moderate Republicans, as well as a fired-up Democratic base like we're seeing here in New Hampshire, is that I have been able to build a coalition, a wide tent. I think that's what we need right now."
At one point, co-host Joy Behar chimed in, asking whether the show was "prosecuting Amy Klobuchar today." Behar laughed, but the issue was no laughing matter for Hostin.
ostin confronted Klobuchar over the case of Myon Burrell, whom Klobuchar prosecuted in the 2002 shooting death of an 11-year-old girl. A recent Associated Press investigation into the case uncovered new evidence and myriad inconsistencies, raising questions about whether Burrell, who is serving a life sentence, was railroaded by police.
"I've reviewed the facts of that case and it is one of the most flawed investigations and prosecutions that I think I have ever seen," said Hostin, a former prosecutor.
After criticizing the prosecution, she asked Klobuchar: "How do you defend something like that to someone like me who is the mother of a black boy, a black teenager? This case would be my worst nightmare."
Klobuchar, who joined the show remotely from New Hampshire, said she's already called for a review of all the evidence in that case. That apparently wasn't good enough for Hostin, who pressed further on the issue.
"Well, you're a U.S. senator now, you're a powerful woman -- what do you intend to do to right this wrong?" Hostin asked. In response, Klobuchar reiterated that she'd called for a review of the evidence.
"It had no gun, it had no DNA evidence, and it had no fingerprints," Hostin interjected.
The case relied heavily on a teen rival of Burrell’s who gave conflicting accounts when identifying the shooter, who was largely obscured behind a wall 120 feet away.
With no other eyewitnesses, police turned to multiple jailhouse snitches. Some have since recanted, saying they were coached or coerced. Others were given reduced time, raising questions about their credibility. And the lead homicide detective offered “major dollars” for names, even if it was hearsay.
There was no gun, fingerprints, or DNA. Alibis were never seriously pursued. Key evidence has gone missing or was never obtained, including a convenience store surveillance tape that Burrell and others say would have cleared him.
Burrell, now 33, has maintained his innocence, rejecting all plea deals.
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