Before the November election, I posted a preliminary version of the 2012 Humane Scorecard, and last week, after the conclusion of Congress’ “lame-duck” session, I provided a look at our year in review for animals. We made some modest progress, but the 112th Congress left a lot of unfinished business on animal protection issues, paving the way for a challenging new session.
A few days after the election, an excerpt from this Washington Post editorial on the waning power of the NRA caught my eye:
There is disappointing news from North Dakota tonight, as Measure 5 appears to be going down to defeat. The opponents of this measure, mostly ranching and farming trade associations, were able to cast doubt among voters and tell them the proposed felony animal cruelty law was written by “outside” groups, as if the language morphs into something different depending on who backs it.
If you’re ready for the election to be over, you’re not alone. After months of campaigning, TV ads, and robo-calls, tomorrow is the day when the vast majority of voters cast their ballots on the presidential, congressional, state and local races around the country.
As the nation continues to reel from the effect of Hurricane Sandy, and some areas begin their slow and difficult recovery, it’s a reminder of just how important it was for Congress to pass the Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards (PETS) Act in 2006, which now requires disaster plans to include pets and service animals.
North Dakotans will vote next week on Measure 5, to make it a felony to maliciously and intentionally harm a dog, cat or horse. Lawmakers in neighboring states such as Montana and Minnesota adopted felony-level penalties for malicious cruelty years ago, and Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Oklahoma took action in the 19th century! In fact, 48 states have done it, and it’s embarrassing that North Dakota is such an outlier.
In February, a photo of Dan Richards, president of the California Fish and Game Commission, began circulating on the Internet: Richards gleefully posed in a trophy picture with a dead mountain lion he had killed on a guided hound hunt in Idaho. Cougar hunting is legal in Idaho, but California voters banned the practice in 1990 and reaffirmed the prohibition with a second statewide vote in 1996.
It’s just about one week left before Election Day, and one of the battleground states for animal protection is North Dakota. Measure 5 would make it a felony to maliciously and intentionally harm a dog, cat or horse, and would bring North Dakota’s cruelty law in line with those of 48 other states that previously adopted felony penalties for extreme animal abusers.
The Humane Society Legislative Fund today launched a statewide radio ad campaign in Arizona opposing Rep. Jeff Flake for U.S. Senate. The radio ad, which you can listen to here, tells listeners that Flake has fought even the most modest animal welfare reforms in Congress, he is out of step with our values on protecting animals from cruelty, and he’s too extreme for Arizona.
