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Animal issues and the candidates

By VoteYourRebate in TX = Chrystal Hays - Feb 18th, 2008 at 11:34 pm EST

Also listed in: Obama Dallas

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The Humane Society of Southern Arizona has released a report on the candidates' positions and histories where animals are concerned. I have copied it to my extended blog. The underlining and colors are not from me...I would have left them out.

I believe a society can be judged in many ways by how it treats animals, both wild and tame. I believe our country has become unbalanced in this regard, and only education can help.

Responsibility is something that has to be taught and learned. Kindness and responsiblity can be the same thing, but responsibility is more important.

(Stewardship is not about airline service, either.)

On a spiritual note, I believe that not only does God know when the sparrow falls from its nest, but He is also watching to see who will stop and who will pass it by, and who is kind enough to lift it back.

Which Presidential Candidates are Animal Friendly?

As we watch the television coverage of the presidential elections and
read the newspapers articles and editorials, we often wonder which
candidates care about animals.

Senator Hillary Clinton:

In the current session of Congress, Senator Hillary Clinton was a
co-sponsor of legislation dealing with horse slaughter and animal
fighting, and she previously co-sponsored legislation to stop the
processing of "downer" livestock and to crack down on abusive puppy
mills where dogs are treated like production machines She led efforts in
the 108th and 109th Congresses to stop the overuse of antibiotics in
farm animals, which allow them to be crammed in overcrowded, stressful,
unsanitary conditions on factory farms. She had a perfect 100 percent
score on the Humane Scorecard in the 108th and 109th Congresses.

Source:
The Presidential Files: Discussing the Donkeys by Michael Markarian
http://hslf.typepad.com/political_animal/2008/01/donkeys.html

Visit Humane Society Legislative Fund (HSLF) Scorecard at
www.fund.org/humanescorecard/

Senator Barack Obama

In the current session of Congress, Senator Barack Obama was a
co-sponsor of measures to stop horse slaughter, upgrade the penalties
for animal fighting, and crack down on dogfighting. Senator Obama has
had a strong record for animals in both the Illinois State Senate and
the U.S. Senate. Read more about his responses to the Humane Society
Legislative Fund's questionnaire in Michael Markarian's longer entry,
"Barack Obama and the Dog-acity of Hope

In his Humane Society of the United States questionnaire response,
Senator Obama pledges support for nearly every animal protection bill
currently pending in Congress, and says he will work with executive
agencies such as the U.S. Department of Agriculture to make their
policies more humane.

Senator Obama on links between animal cruelty and violence in society:
"I've repeatedly voted to increase penalties for animal cruelty and
violence and, importantly, to require psychological counseling for those
who engage in this behavior... In addition to being unacceptable in its
own stead, violence towards animals is linked with violent behavior in
general, especially domestic violence... As president, I'd continue to
make sure that we treat animal cruelty like the serious crime it is and
address its connection to broader patterns of violence."

As Illinois State Senator:
Voted for at least a dozen animal protection laws that came up during
that time. Supported measures: To allow creation of pet trusts for
long-term care of companion animals; to upgrade penalties for cruelty to
animals; to require psychological counseling for people who abuse
animals; to require veterinarians report suspected acts of cruelty and
animal fighting; to ban the slaughter of horses for human consumption...

As U.S. Senator:
Voted to end federal funding of horse slaughter in 2005. Currently a
co-sponsor of new legislation to stop horse slaughter and export of
horses for human consumption. Co-sponsored legislation to upgrade
federal penalties for dogfighting and cockfighting. Co-sponsor of new
legislation to ban possession of fighting dogs and being a spectator at
a dogfight. Signed letter requesting increased funds for enforcement of
the Animal Welfare Act, Humane Methods of Slaughter Act, and federal
animal fighting law. Sent letter to National Zoo expressing concern for
the care of Toni the elephant.

SOURCE:
The Presidential Files: Barack Obama and the Dog-acity of Hope
http://hslf.typepad.com/political_animal/2007/12/the-president-3.html

INFORMATION:
READ MORE:
http://hslf.typepad.com/political_animal/2007/12/the-president-3.html

Animal Rights Advocates for Obama
http://my.barackobama.com/page/group/AnimalRightsAdvocatesforObama

Governor Mike Huckabee

During Huckabee's administration:
Arkansas lawmakers tried to pass legislation upgrading the state's
anti-cruelty law from misdemeanor to felony... They received no help
from the governor, and were unsuccessful every time. Stymied by the
legislative process, animal advocates collected signatures to place an
anti-cruelty and anti-cockfighting measure on the statewide ballot in
2002.

All that came from Huckabee during the ballot campaign was a deafening
silence. The measure went down in flames, largely because of a campaign
run by the Arkansas Farm Bureau, Arkansas Cattlemen's Association,
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, and Ducks Unlimited -- groups with
which Huckabee associates himself -- falsely claiming this modest
proposal to upgrade penalties for animal cruelty would have adversely
impacted hunting, fishing, farming, and other Arkansas traditions...

Huckabee's pandering to the sport hunting lobby:
November television ad in Iowa featured action star Chuck Norris, who
stated, "Mike Huckabee is a lifelong hunter..." During a speech to the
NRA in September, Huckabee...talked about shooting a bullet that was
guided by angels to pierce an antelope, and exclaimed, "I'm pretty sure
there will be duck hunting in heaven, and I can't wait." [Huckabee spent
Christmas Day killing tame pheasants].

1998 -- Huckabee's son David, 17, kills stray dog:
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported former Governor Mike Huckabee's son,
David, fired from job as a Boy Scout camp counselor because he and
another teen allegedly killed a stray dog... The boys hanged the dog,
slit his throat, and stoned him to death -- but were never charged with
any crime.

At the time of the camp incident, a local prosecutor asked the Arkansas
State Police to investigate whether David Huckabee violated state
anti-cruelty laws. Newsweek broke the story that the former director of
the state police, John Bailey, says Huckabee's chief of staff and
personal attorney leaned on him to drop the investigation... Bailey
refused to play ball and was fired seven months later. It seems Huckabee
tried to stop the state police from investigating the cruelty charges
against his son, and Bailey's story is corroborated by the former FBI
chief in Little Rock .

SOURCE:
http://hslf.typepad.com/political_animal/2007/12/the-presidentia.html

INFORMATION:
http://hslf.typepad.com/political_animal/2007/12/the-presidentia.html

Senator John McCain:

In the U.S. Senate:
Senator McCain has been a strong supporter of numerous animal welfare
issues, earning scores of up to 75 percent on the Humane Scorecard.
Voted for and co-sponsored legislation to stop horse slaughter. Voted to
eliminate a $2 million subsidy for the mink industry. Co-sponsored bills
to stop interstate shipment of birds for cockfighting and to stop
poaching of bears by ending trade in their gall bladders and other
viscera.

He took an anti-animal position by supporting an amendment to the
California Desert Protection Act which would have allowed sport hunting
in the Mojave National Park . A leader in effort to stop global warming.
Opposes drilling for oil in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge...

SOURCE:
The Presidential Files: Evaluating the Elephants
http://hslf.typepad.com/political_animal/2008/01/elephants.html

INFORMATION:
http://hslf.typepad.com/political_animal/2008/01/elephants.html

Governor Mitt Romney

Romney's infamous 1983 vacation:
Romney attracted the ire of animal advocates when they learned that
during a 1983 vacation, he put the family's Irish setter, Seamus, in a
carrier and strapped him to the roof rack of the station wagon. When the
terrified dog urinated and defecated during the 12-hour drive, Romney
pulled over, hosed down the dog, and continued the voyage from Boston to
Ontario .

As chief executive of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City :
Romney also came under fire from animal protection groups for allowing a
rodeo exhibition that included calf roping.

His term as governor:
Appointed a raft of animal-unfriendly people to the state Fisheries and
Wildlife Board. He did, however, sign a bill passed in 2006 to
strengthen the Massachusetts animal fighting law and prevent a convicted
animal abuser from getting the animal back.

SOURCE:
The Presidential Files: Evaluating the Elephants
http://hslf.typepad.com/political_animal/2008/01/elephants.html

INFORMATION:
http://hslf.typepad.com/political_animal/2008/01/elephants.html

Congressman Ron Paul

His Record in Congress:

Driven by attitude that the federal government should not play a role in
protecting animals from cruelty. Rep. Paul one of only 31 members of
U.S. House of Representatives who voted against every single animal
protection measure that came up for a vote in 2007.

Voted in March to keep federal penalties weak for dogfighting and
cockfighting... Voted in April against restoring decades-old protections
for wild horses and burros, instead opting to let them be sold for
commercial slaughter. Voted in June to allow wealthy American trophy
hunters to shoot polar bears in the Arctic and bring their heads and
hides back home...

It hasn't always been this way for Ron Paul:
Voted, several years ago, to cut funding for lethal predator control,
trapping on national wildlife refuges, and trophy hunting programs in
foreign countries. But...libertarians like Paul don't want to see laws
enacted that restrict personal behavior, even if that behavior may
involve dogfighting or eating mustangs.

SOURCE:
The Presidential Files: Ron Paul and Michael Vick
http://hslf.typepad.com/political_animal/2007/12/ron-paul.html

INFORMATION:
http://hslf.typepad.com/political_animal/2007/12/ron-paul.html

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