That is not criminalizing thought. That's considering the intent of the criminal. One problem with this legislation is that though well-meaning, the name supporters have attached to it confuses many people about what it would do. Calling it the James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Act, after the victim of a dragging death in Jasper, Texas, implies that it somehow deals with race-related killings. It does not.
Murder is murder.
The bill does not deal with any first-degree felonies. The burning of a cross in a family's yard could be prosecuted as vandalism, trespassing or any number of minor offenses. But it is a hate crime because it is directed at everyone with the victims' skin color. It is a lot more than vandalism, a lot more than trespassing. The spray-painting of Nazi symbols on a synagogue could be treated as vandalism or trespassing.