Chair of the House Natural Resources Committee, Representative Raul Grijalva, is leading the charge along with a group of bipartisan legislators to stop Congress from funding the insidious “Path Forward,” a plan for mass removals of wild horses and burros from our public lands.
Chairman Grijalva’s campaign calls upon Congress to:
- Limit new fiscal appropriations to the $6 million appropriated by the House
- Add language that mandates the $6 million be spent on humane, reversible fertility control
- Add a prohibition against surgical sterilization
Chairman Grijalva rightly states that “Fundamental changes to existing law should not be done in spending bills without hearings, testimony, evidence, and due consideration by the authorizing committee tasked with these responsibilities.” With this statement he strikes back against the lobbyists and private interest groups trying to push this disastrous plan through Congress without going through the appropriate channels.
So what does this mean? It means your hard work, your action, your lending your voice to this cause is working. Chairman Grijalva and 11 other bipartisan members of Congress are standing up and calling BLM to task. We do have champions willing to stand up for our American icons in Congress, and your voices have led the charge for them to do so.
I’m reminded of a favorite quote from Margaret Mead:
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
Don’t ever forget that your efforts helped to spur theirs. If we the people don’t care enough to act, our representatives don’t have any incentive to do so either. Thank YOU for all you’ve done this past year and especially these past few months to stop this hideous plan from moving forward. The battle is not won yet, but we are on the field fighting, and we will never give up.
The Cloud Foundation, along with Animal Wellness Action and the American Wild Horse Campaign, are proud to stand with Chairman Grijalva on this initiative.
“We thank Chair Grijalva for his leadership on this important issue,” said Ginger Kathrens, Founder of The Cloud Foundation. “The appropriation of additional funds to this program, especially as BLM has failed to present any kind of plan to Congress, would be a grave mistake. If Congress chooses to appropriate additional funds, we strongly support Chair Grijalva. There are intelligent, cost-effective ways to manage healthy herds on healthy rangelands, but this plan is not one.”
“We applaud Chairman Grijalva’s tremendous leadership and tireless work to prevent the devastating roundup and incarceration of our iconic American wild horses, whose very backs this country was built upon,” said Marty Irby, executive director at Animal Wellness Action, and a lifelong horseman. “We must continue to do everything within our power to defend these symbols of our nation from their strategically planned eradication negotiated by the Humane Society, ASPCA, and pro-slaughter crowd.”
“We commend House Natural Resources Chair Raúl M. Grijalva for leading a bipartisan group of lawmakers in requesting restrictions on funding appropriated in the FY 2020 spending bill that would impact America’s federally protected wild horse and burro populations,” said Suzanne Roy, Executive Director of the American Wild Horse Campaign. “We are deeply grateful to Rep. Grijalva for continuing his longstanding work as a great champion for wild horses.”
Dana Zarrello, Deputy Director
The Cloud Foundation
107 South 7th St
Colorado Springs, CO 80905
www.thecloudfoundation.org