[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 2 (Friday, January 5, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E34]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




IT'S TIME TO STOP THE SLAUGHTER OF A LIVING SYMBOL OF THE AMERICAN WEST

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. NICK J. RAHALL, II

                            of west virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, January 5, 2007

  Mr. RAHALL. Madam Speaker, today I am reintroducing legislation that 
I first authored in the 109th Congress to restore the prohibition on 
the commercial sale and slaughter of wild free-roaming horses and 
burros. I am again joined in this effort by my good friend and 
colleague from Kentucky, Ed Whitfield.
  In both 2005 and 2006 the House adopted amendments I offered to the 
Interior and Environment Appropriations bill to prohibit the use of 
Federal funds for the sale or slaughter of wild free-roaming horses and 
burros. While we were successful in the House, neither amendment made 
it into law. In any event, these amendments would have only been a 
temporary one-year fix. What is needed is a permanent solution to this 
problem. That is why I am offering my legislation today.
  It was just a little over two years ago that 36 lines were hidden 
away in a 1,641 page appropriations bill that overturned more than 30 
years of national policy on the protection and management of wild free-
roaming horses and burros, allowing these ``living symbols of the 
historic and pioneer spirit of the West'' to literally be slaughtered 
through the use of a backdoor legislative maneuver enacted without 
public notice or input.
  The public reaction to this change in law was swift and deafening. 
There was a good reason why it had been illegal for more than 30 years 
to sell or transfer wild free-roaming wild horses and burros for 
processing into commercial products. Americans were aghast to learn 
that these animals could be slaughtered for their meat to be served on 
dinner tables in such foreign countries as France, Belgium, and Japan.
  Horses are an integral part of the tapestry of this country--a 
symbol, a promise of possibility, a companion, and a treasured 
childhood memory. Americans have always championed their survival, and 
expect that that these creatures will be protected. To allow them to be 
sacrificed and slaughtered represents great disrespect to the will of 
the American people and is an affront to our nation's history.
  Instead of addressing long-term and widespread management problems 
the Bureau of Land Management, which administers the wild horse and 
burro program, has been forced to scurry to try to stop wild horses and 
burros from being sent to slaughter. Unfortunately for several dozen of 
these animals their attempts came too late and slaughter occurred.
  Slaughter is all the more senseless since humane alternatives exist 
and federal agencies have the authority to carry out such humane 
measures as adoption, sterilization, relocation, and placement with 
qualified individuals and organizations.
  The time has long since passed to restore the prohibition on the sale 
and slaughter of wild free-roaming horses and burros. I urge my 
colleague to heed the will of the American public and respond to common 
decency by supporting my legislation. We owe no less to these living 
symbols of the American West.

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