Obama, Biden, McCain, Palin On Animal Issues
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Let’s take a look at the front-running Presidential and VP candidates from a vegan/ animal perspective.
Who comes out in support of animals and who doesn’t?
And how will you vote?
(Leave a comment!)
McCain & Palin:
“McCain co-sponsored new legislation to stop horse slaughter, backed a bill to stop the shipment of live birds between states for the only purpose of cockfighting, supported a bill to stop the killing of bears by ending trade in their gall bladders and other viscera and organs.
“Senator McCain also took a position against the fur industry, by voting to eliminate a $2 million subsidy for the mink industry. And he voted against allowing drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, saving the thousands of animals who lived there.
“He earned scores of up to 75 percent on the Humane Scorecard”
(source)
However,
“A woman from an exceedingly macho state, Palin takes pride in her hunting skills. She has even gone as far as taking her daughter out with her on caribou shooting expeditions. In passing on the hunting lifestyle to her daughter, Palin is merely following in the footsteps of her father who in turn took her as a child to hunt moose. What is the governor’s favorite food? That would be moose stew, of course! A longtime member of the National Rifle Association, Palin once proudly announced that her freezer was full of wild game.
“No friend to wild animals, Palin has offered incentives for people who kill wolves in an effort to boost Alaska’s predator control program which so far has failed to meet expected numbers. The incentives include offering 180 volunteer pilots and aerial gunners $150 in cash for turning in gruesome legs of freshly killed wolves.”
(source)
“John McCain was bombing women in a light bulb factory and animals in its surroundings when shot down, has a 0% animal rights voting record. Water buffalo, birds and countless other animals were burned bombed and maimed by the napalm, by machine gun fire, etc. He wants to continue his 41 year history of supporting the murder of people and animals in illegal and violent wars.”
(source)
“Palin has sued the Bush administration to delist polar bears under the Endangered Species Act because the protection of polar bears interferes with drilling for oil and gas. Palin even penned an op-ed for the New York Times, explaining her scientific arguments against protecting polar bears. Isn’t it funny how her op-ed doesn’t mention drilling for oil? [...] from an animal rights standpoint, Sarah Palin would be a disastrous VP.”
(source)
Obama & Biden:
“Senator Obama released the following statement: ‘When I am President, it will not be business as usual when it comes to food safety. I will provide additional resources to hire more federal food inspectors. I will also call on the Department of Agriculture to examine whether federal food safety laws need to be strengthened, in particular to provide greater protections against tainted food being used in the National School Lunch Program.’
“‘As the parent of two young daughters, there are few issues more important to me than ensuring the safety of the food that our children consume. I commend the Humane Society of the United States for bringing this important issue to the public attention and believe that the mistreatment of downed cows is unacceptable and poses a serious threat to public health.’”
(source)“Obama has shown a bit more compassion towards animals. During a candidate’s town hall meeting outside Las Vegas, a woman shouted out at Obama, ‘What about animal rights?’ Obama responded that he cared about animal rights very much, ‘not only because I have a 9-year-old and 6-year-old who want a dog.’
“Obama added that he sponsored a bill to prevent horse slaughter in the Illinois state Senate and had been repeatedly endorsed by the Humane Society. ‘I think how we treat our animals reflects how we treat each other,’ he said. ‘And it’s very important that we have a president who is mindful of the cruelty that is perpetrated on animals.’”
(source)“he is considered a strong candidate on animal rights issues. He has co-sponsored new legislation to stop horse slaughter and export of horses for human consumption, to upgrade federal penalties for dogfighting and cockfighting, to ban possession of fighting dogs and being a spectator at a dogfight. He also signed a 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.
“In his response to a questionnaire by the Humane Society Legislative Fund (which tries to pass animal protection laws at state and federal levels), 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.”
(source)
Senator Biden supported the interests of the The Humane Society of the United States 75 percent in 2007.
Senator Biden supported the interests of the Fund for Animals 80 percent in 2005-2006.
(source)
However,
“In April 2007 he said: ‘I don’t hunt myself, but I respect hunters and sportsmen.’”
(source)“Obama’s wife has been the spokesperson for vivisecting Univ of Chicago”
(source)
Obama all the way! Never a doubt.
~ Recent blog post: U.N. Climate Expert: Reduce Meat Consumption to Combat Climate Change at http://www.diggingthroughthedirt.blogspot.com ~
Barak Obama is definitely the better candidate (and not just for these animal-related issues), but it’s a shame Dennis Kucinich didn’t have the opportunity to go further. People don’t know what they could have had.
~ Recent blog post: Heartbreaking Pictures of Whale Slaughter at http://ahimsablog.wordpress.com ~
There is some conversation out there on the issue of dogs, “puppy mills,” and elitism spurred on by P.E.T.A. on Obama’s daughters’ desire to get a dog. Google search it; it’s everywhere. It has been an interesting conversation to say the least.
Jen say’s that she won’t vote for Obama if he doesn’t rescue or adopt a dog (as opposed to purchasing a dog from a breeder) on general principle.
On my vote, I’m actually frightened that Palin will hunt me if given the power. Therefore, mine is a prudent vote for Obama
~ Recent blog post: That’s a lot of miles per pound. at http://www.not-quiteright.net/tvg ~
“I’m actually frightened that Palin will hunt me if given the power. ”
haha.
Wait, that’s not funny. She is a war-monger, so…
“it’s a shame Dennis Kucinich didn’t have the opportunity to go further. ”
Agreed.
“Obama’s daughter’s desire to get a dog”
Definitely should adopt one from a shelter. I hear she has allergies. I have allergies, too. I found a poodle mix at the city pound who needed a home after someone decided “he slept too much.” He’s wonderful!
I’ve seem Obama eat a steak sandwich on tv. I only saw McCain eat ice cream on tv. But, Palin, I see, that the killing of the Caribou is more humane than the slaughterhouses that kill food on our dinner table. At least that Caribou had a great life until it died, unlike the life of the slaughterhouse cows that live miserable lives.
I still vote for McCain with his strong environmental issues and his desire to preserve wildlife and natural environments with their species intact. And, he supports not slaughtering horses, which is great. And, I believe Palin only kills what she eats, not like these wasteful slaughterhouse junkies eating fast food and killing animals and beating them to death or abusing them while in the slaughterhouses. We need a vegan president.
Please go to the Humane Society of U.S. website and read an extensive article on Palin and her bloodlust for killing animals. She also cares nothing about the earth. She will never have my vote!! She is a hippocrite on issues. I will wait until a REAL women runs for office.
I’m sorry, but McCain’s VP can burn in hell for all I care. I will NOT let some insensitive animal murdered help rule the country. Obama’s only gonna get on my good side if he adopts a dog.
Regarding Obama and adopting a dog, I sent him a letter encouraging him to adopt rather than buy. Here’s the letter:
http://elainevigneault.com/open-letter-to-barack-obama.html
Feel free to copy portions of the letter yourself and send him your own letter.
I have only seen comments advocating that the candidates should adopt a dog. Why not adopt a homeless CAT? Any pet would be great as long as it is a rescued or homeless animal — absolutely not a manufactured designer pet from some unscrupulous mass-breeder who mutilates animals by “docking” ears, tails, or other “non-aesthetically pleasing” parts the animal was born with.
That’s a good move Eccentric Vegan. I did the same.
~ Recent blog post: There’s a vegan on A.N.T.M.! at http://www.not-quiteright.net/tvg ~
http://www.slate.com/id/2199140/
(see this site!!!)
Aloha
I have been a RAW foods vegan for 40 years now…
I am more than concerned for the vegan and yes even vegetarian community to know about Palin.
I am sending a few links here.
The state of alaska offers 150$ for the dee to freshly shot wolves that are shot en-masse from helicopters!!
Sarah Palin wants the Polar Bears out of the way and they endanger oil drilling personel in Alaska
She eats Moose stew and moose burger (seriously)
She hunts and kills virtually all species
Her son is a serious drug addict (Track) etc,
If vegans have ever done anything right they have to get the word out outside of veganism..in the mainstream.
If Obama is not so perfect then help him to learn more dont condemn.
By the way Sarah Palin shoots for sport she has stated that repeatedly
in the media.
Also Bears are part of the state run elimination program…call it what you will they pay for extermination of bears and wolves indiscriminately..dont play with words here .
Humans are next with that philosophy
We are not against brutality we are for kindness and respect that is much more powerful…
Elan Sun Star
Hawaii
http://www.sunstarphoto.com
………………….
http://www.slate.com/id/2199140/
NO way no Palin. What a murderer! I can’t support someone who loves to hunt. She might as well join in the Canadian seal hunt. Then to take her child to watch mommy kill caribou?? Umm, take your child to go shopping, NOT to go hunting. She has no experience either yet she says bad things about Obama. Umm lady wake up! Obama has been a senator longer than YOU have been a governor. So WHO is least experienced?? YOU ARE Sara. We don’t need you animal haters in the White House.
A polar bear sights Palin begins to run quickly after her “A Moose in the head lights, with lipstick? ” Oh My!
Ok I know thats bad could not help myself!!
I’m not sure what Mr. Obama’s position on killing wildlife is. However I do know he is personally responsible for blocking a bill that would have allowed doctors to give medical treatment to babies born alive after botched abortions. He listened to personal testimony from nurses who were only allowed to hold these babies for their short lives and watch them inhumanly suffer and fade away which often takes hours. Obama personally blocked the state bill even after wording was changed be the same as the Federal Bill which passed the US Senate unopposed (Both Hillary & Kerry voted in favor of the bill). I cannot vote for someone who has that little regard for human life. I also cannot imagine that someone who is not concerned with the humane treatment of newborn babies would somehow be concerned with humane treatment of animals.
Here are links to the full congressional testimony of some of these nurses- no spin added.
http://nobamanews.blogspot.com/2008/07/jill-staneks-full-testimony_05.html
http://nobamanews.blogspot.com/2008/07/allison-bakers-full-testimony.html
the federal law – no spin added
http://www.nrlc.org/ObamaBAIPA/BAIPAFederal.pdf
Jill Stanek is the nurse who took this issue to her state legislature. This is the link to her full report in Citizen Link (non-partisan)
http://www.citizenlink.org/content/A000007034.cfm#
I’m a deafblind vegan. I wouldn’t know who to vote for if I lived in USA but I certainly wouldn’t vote for Obama because he wants to legalise abortion up until birth. He’s no friend of the disabled since I’ve heard he supports Eutanasia too.
Wheras Palin kept her downs baby. She’s actually going to DO something about abortion. Since 90 percent of downs babies get murdered that’s very good as far as I am concerned. So things will be better for the disabled with her then someone who thinks we would be better off dead.
I know people don’t consider abortion as an issue for animal rights but aren’t we animals too. At 10 weeks a fetus starts to feel pain. So we should concern ourselves with that.
I don’t like what I hear about her war mongering or the wolves polarbear but then Obama isn’t promising anything major either. It’s all lip. Believe me we won’t be able to convince him on anything once he gets into office. I’ve had enough of that kind of politition here in britian.
“the animal advocacy and environmental movements will be much better off with the Democrats in this election cycle”
from: http://animalrighter.blogspot.com/2008/09/obama-vs-mccain-on-animals-environment.html
Definitely worth a read!
FYI, the HSUS endorses Obama:
https://community.hsus.org/humane/notice-description.tcl?newsletter_id=27497157
How did an animal lover like McCain end up with an animal killer like Palin? As they say, politics make for strange bedfellows. But all three candidates in two tickets will and have supported bills favoring animal welfare. Palin is the exception, for she supported aerial hunting of wolves, the delisting of polar bears from the endangered list, offered a $150 bounty for every wolf foreleg, and has boasted of a freezer full of killed animals. Expect Palin to have no sympathy for animal welfare if she becomes VP, or President of the United States. There is a one out of five chances that McCain will not complete a term. Nothing but dark clouds for the Palin-McCain ticket.
Alaska is a different world. Their food prices are 4-10 times higher than in the lower 48 – think $10/lb for chicken, who could afford $50 for a chicken? Granted vegans don’t buy chicken but the rest do. Just about every food in Alaska has to be flown in and those huge transportation costs make groceries — of any kind, vegan or non-vegan — astronomical compared to the rest of the country. Diet may be a social choice for some but for many it’s an economic and traditional choice as well.
In Alaska, people are raised “off the land” which in a climate like that, means you eat more meat. Look at the indigenous people there, the Eskimo, their cuisine is based on meat because that is the only thing that is plentiful there year round. Sure they have some things to gather in the summer but not enough to last all year, so meat was by default the staple. This is simply the truth of survival in that land and so it becomes their tradition — just like a lot of hunting is in other lands.
Gov Palin was raised in this culture and if you look at food prices there, there is no way one can survive easily on a normal middle class income without supplementing the diet with “free” hunted meat. I agree with Maureen who wrote that people who hunt to eat are far different than those who hunt to slaughter for the fun of it. There is a big difference from survival to gleeful murder and Gov Palin’s hunting falls in the first camp. Remember too that people who hunt typically have to adopt a way to internally deal with the act of it, a public bravado they adopt, as it is not easy to hunt when you have a heart and yet you must survive via hunted food. I know this because of my own husband who hunted as a kid because that was their family tradition. He quit as an adult because he couldn’t stomach it and he could afford to find food in other ways (not in overpriced Alaska) so it wasn’t required of him by family tradition or by economic stress.
This adoption of a “brave face” is not much different than the one which must be adopted by healthcare workers who have to deal with the blood and guts and death of patients — they find a way to muscle their way through via a tough outward face. Inside you find most of these people are sweet loving marshmallows…. the brave face is just a way to do what must be done.
Also on Barack Obama, remember that apparently he only “loves” animals because his daughters “want one”. Have we ever heard about any pets he cared about? From childhood or later? No. Why does he not have any animals to enrich his life and that of his kids right now? They have a lovely home with more than enough room and have owned this home for a few years now. Are pets too inconvenient for him, too much responsibility, too much trouble? Will the pets “soil” the lovely McMansion and so must be avoided at all costs? If you love animals, you know the richness they bring to life — there is nothing that can replace the love of a dog or cat for the owner and vice versa, the bond, the family they become. Pets reduce stress, impart responsibility and compassion life lesson values and help us feel fulfilled in life while actually helping us emotionally and even medically as per studies. Why would anyone who says they love animals choose not to have animals in their life? Perhaps because they really don’t love them and are just saying so for political gain?
I also find it disturbing that Obama made a comment in interview this summer along the lines of “he promised his girls a dog ‘once they get to the White House’ ” — what, now a dog is a prize for the little girls based on whether or not their father is elected? That is just sad and so wrong in my book. A dog should come in for the sake of love, for the sake of soul and NOT for the sake of appearances or as a reward and appeasement.
I think Barack Obama is the ultimate forked tongue politician – while John McCain does as he says, lives the way he shows it, and that honesty and integrity is what’s most important to me. It surely doesn’t hurt to know that McCain supports and loves dozens of pet in his home, enriching his family every day. People who have pets are more balanced, more real and more like me!
Please do your research people before calling Palin names b/c she supports hunting. FYI, Obama supports hunting. Google it! So, since both sides support it, now you have to chooses sides on other issues. Personally, I feel the safety of the U.S. is just as important of an issue as the economy is and McCain knows what it’s like to be a Prisoner of War for 5 1/2 years and being tortured. He has one or two sons in Iraq. Do you think he wants his kid to get killed or tortured? He will not take war lightly. He will make the best decision for the U.S. to keep us safe. Japan and South Korea have had U.S. soldiers over there for many years for the purpose of keeping us safe. The point is that we need to remember safety for the U.S. is primary next to the economy. McCain is not going to raise taxes. Do you all realize that if taxes are raised on big companies like Obama proposes, the consumer (you) will have to pay more for products. For example, gas, food, clothes, etc.? If Wal-Mart gets taxed, they have to raise the prices. Do you think they’ll take a loss for their taxes being raised? Keeping taxes down to the businesses is what will help the economy. The businesses will have more to re-invest in their business, such as hiring more employees. WAKE UP AMERICA. Remember, Fidel Castro came at the right time when Cubans wanted change real bad and they beleived everything he said. Words are just words. Obama became senator in 2005 and no military experience AT ALL. Common people, what kind of experience is that compared to McCain for the leader of the U.S., which leads the world too.
i loves animals and knowing that my president also loves animals and will help them out means the world to me. we are like animals if you dont like animals it is like not liking people. if you are a president that will help animals i respect you and give you a vote.
I was reading in a disabled rights website the other day to see what both parties had to offer the disabled. This is a quote that I came up with that greatly concerned me.
Quote:
We need to invest in biomedical research and stem cell research, so that we are at the leading edge of prevention and treatment. This includes adequate funding for research into diseases such as heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, breast cancer, diabetes, autism and other common and rare diseases, and disorders. We will increase funding to the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the National Cancer Institutes.
So it seems Obama is going for extra funding in biomedical research.
Taken from here: http://jfactivist.typepad.com/jfacti…e-the-rnc.html
It concerns me so much that I’ve done a google and found more information here: http://www.bioresearchonline.com/art…?VNETCOOKIE=NO (unfortunately it’s not accessable for me but from Google it said it was about Obama’s stand on biomedical research)
http://www.highlighthealth.com/resou…nd-healthcare/
http://medical.bizcommunity.com/Arti…323/28521.html
Please note that all these sited are PRO animal testing so you will have to read between the lines. That is to say Obama is their buddy and will help them torture more animals as part of the american tax increase wheras Macain is going to reduce Biomedical research as part of his tax cuts.
This paricular quote stands out:
Quote:
“Obama’s STEM agenda shows his commitment to investing in the physical and life sciences”.
What I want to know is why is it not concerning anyone else in the animal rights movement?