One day after Saturday’s deadly massacre at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, federal prosecutors announced their intention to pursue the death penalty against the killer. The president is on the same page. At a rally in Illinois, President Trump declared of murderous criminals, “They have to pay the ultimate price.”

Both the president and prosecutors are entirely correct in their conclusion that in this case, capital punishment is both the lawfully and morally correct response to anti-Semitic hate and life-ending horror. In a society that should be based upon mutual respect for the lives of our fellow man no matter race, creed, or religion, there can be no other conclusion.