The Humane Society Legislative Fund (HSLF), a non-partisan organization dedicated to animal welfare, has for the first time in its history endorsed a presidential ticket: Barack Obama and Joe Biden. They explain the endorsement here.
In a nutshell, John McCain's selection of animal-slaughtering snowbilly Sarah Palin as his VP pick is what pushed the HSLF to endorse Obama-Biden:
While McCain’s positions on animal protection have been lukewarm, his choice of running mate cemented our decision to oppose his ticket. Gov. Sarah Palin’s (R-Alaska) retrograde policies on animal welfare and conservation have led to an all-out war on Alaska’s wolves and other creatures. Her record is so extreme that she has perhaps done more harm to animals than any other current governor in the United States.
Palin engineered a campaign of shooting predators from airplanes and
helicopters, in order to artificially boost the populations of moose
and caribou for trophy hunters. She offered a $150 bounty for the left
foreleg of each dead wolf as an economic incentive for pilots and
aerial gunners to kill more of the animals, even though Alaska voters
had twice approved a ban on the practice. This year, the issue was up
again for a vote of the people, and Palin led the fight against it—in
fact, she helped to spend $400,000 of public funds to defeat the
initiative.
What’s more, when the Bush Administration announced its decision to list the polar bear as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, Palin filed a lawsuit to reverse that decision. She said it’s the “wrong move” to protect polar bears, even though their habitat is shrinking and ice floes are vanishing due to global warming.
The choice for animals is especially clear now that Palin is in the mix. If Palin is put in a position to succeed McCain, it could mean rolling back decades of progress on animal issues.
The choice for animals is especially clear now that Palin is in the mix. If Palin is put in a position to succeed McCain, it could mean rolling back decades of progress on animal issues.
I wholeheartedly concur. I supported Dole in '96, and Bush in '00 and '04. Largely because of McCain's pandering choice of hick-magnet Palin as his running-mate, I will not be supporting the GOP this time around.
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