From: NRDC - Frances Beinecke [mailto:[log in to unmask]] 
 
I am dismayed -- and heartbroken -- to report that the last-minute budget
deal agreed to by Congressional leaders on Friday night will strip
endangered species protection from gray wolves across most of the Northern
Rockies, leaving them at the mercy of states that plan to kill hundreds of
them. 

This stealth attack on wolves -- which circumvents the will of the courts
and good science -- was inserted by Representative Mike Simpson (R, ID) and
Senator Jon Tester (D, MT). It was approved by the leadership of both the
House and the Senate, and it was okayed by the White House. 

It is a shameful day for this nation when both parties unite behind the
slaughter of an endangered species -- without public hearing or debate. 

And there is another victim here as well: the Endangered Species Act. 

Congress has never before removed an animal from the endangered species
list. By replacing scientific judgment with political calculation, the House
and Senate have struck at the very heart of wildlife protection in America. 

We have to make sure that the political door is not thrown open to new
attacks on other imperiled species. 

Send a message to your Senators and Representative right now, expressing
your outrage at this attack on wolves and telling them to keep their hands
off the Endangered Species Act. 

In the meantime, I urge you to keep faith with our shared dream of a
sustainable future for wolves in the Northern Rockies. Tens of thousands of
you made your voice heard over the past six months as we tried to stave off
this worst-case outcome in Congress. 

We fought the good fight but, in the end, we could not overcome the Beltway
politics of cynicism and deal-making. We are left feeling terrible sorrow
for the wolves that will now die as a result. 

But make no mistake: we have fought too long and too hard for wolf recovery
to give up. We always knew that achieving our goal could take years, perhaps
decades. And as I write this, NRDC is already preparing for the next phase
of this fight.

Our Montana office will be monitoring the states to ensure that they uphold
their commitment to protect viable populations of wolves -- and we intend to
hold those states accountable. We will also continue to promote practical
methods for ranchers to end wolf conflicts without shooting these
magnificent animals. 

I’ve never been more determined that wolves be allowed to roam wild and free
in the Rockies. I know you’ll stand with us. 

Sincerely,

Frances Beinecke
President 
Natural Resources Defense Council 

P.S. Part of what makes this defeat so hard to stomach is that the Senate
and White House stood strong against 18 other anti-environmental riders.
Thanks to your phone calls and emails, we staved off an attempt to cripple
the EPA’s ability to control air and global warming pollution. That makes
the bipartisan attack on wolves all the more unconscionable. 
 




 







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