I have not always been a fan of Kathleen Parker, WaPo, but her most recent column, “Trump would lose the animal vote,” is very instructive. She uses the examples of Eric & Donald, Jr’s trophy kills & likely appointees of Trump’s to important posts, such as Department of the Interior,” to illustrate her point. Join me below the fold for further critique.
Parker gives Obama a rare compliment for his work in protecting animals, wild & domesticated. Parker is not one to shower Obama with praise, so this caught me by surprise:
The animal kingdom will have lost one of its staunchest defenders when the Oval Office is abandoned by Barak Obama, whose critical administrative rule-making has done more to protect animals than any other president in recent memory…
She goes on to describe pictures of Trump’s son “displaying their trophy kills:"
...One show the two men posing with a leopard they killed in Afica. Another shows Junior holding the tail of an elephant, which he just appears to have sliced off with the knife in his other hand, and another of him lounging against the lifeless hulk of a Cape Buffalo bull...
As if that isn't bad enough, Daddy Trump’s response to his sons’ hobby says it all:
Trump demurred to say that his sons are excellent marksmen. Trump prefers golf he said...Junior meanwhile would like to head the Department of the Interior, which among other things, oversees trophy hunting.
Parker goes on to further show the “Republican nominee’s anti-animal animus” as evident from his choice of agricultural advisors which:
the Humane Society Legislative Fund called a "rogues gallery" of anti-animal welfare activists....Foremost is Forrest Lucas, billionaire founder of Protect the Harvest, an organization focused on fighting the Humane Society and opposing any legislation aimed at restricting cruel animal practices in the production of meat, dairy, & eggs...But such humane propositions are viewed by Lucas’ group as unnessarily restrictive to business, limiting our freedoms, & attacking our all-too-American-culture...
Lucas’ group, responsible for trying to protect circuses & oppose felonies for malicious cruelty to dogs, cats, & horses, is in good company with Iowa Governor Terry Branstad:
...Branstad has the distinction of being the first governor to sign into law an "ag-gag” measure that punishes whistleblowers, giving factory farmers free rein over animal welfare & worker safety. The bill’s sponsor, former Iowa state Rep. Annette Sweeney, is also a Trump advisor.
Parker concludes that Trump’s choice of advisors & “cavalier” attitude toward his sons big game pursuits doesn't bode well for animals. She asks, as I have to ask as well, Is this how you define freedom? It comes as no surprise that Trump would think little of animals, & believe they there for our taking; he hasn't been one to exactly defend the vulnerable among us. This strikes me as a very perverted way of thinking about freedom & our place in the world.
So remember as you go to the polls, your vote may make the difference between the humane treatment of animals and one in which others have the freedom to exploit them.
link to article: www.washingtonpost.com/...