Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Today, the Humane Society of the United States along with a coalition of other animal welfare groups filed suit in Washington DC federal court challenging the delisting of the gray wolf in the Great Lakes. From this article:

“In the short time since federal protections have been removed, trophy hunters and trappers have killed hundreds of Great Lakes wolves under hostile state management programs that encourage dramatic reductions in wolf populations,” Jonathan Lovvorn, chief counsel for animal protection litigation at the HSUS, said in a statement. “This decision rolls back the only line of defense for wolf populations, and paves the way for the same state-sponsored eradication policies that pushed this species to the brink of extinction in the first place.”

Of course no article would be complete without a comment from real-estate developer turned Wisconsin DNR Secretary Cathy Stepp:

“We intend to continue managing wolves in ways that work for Wisconsin, socially and biologically,” DNR Secretary Cathy Stepp said. “But to do so, management authority needs to remain in the hands of the state. We must maintain the authority to employ tools, like a wolf hunt, when populations and depredations peak as they have this year. Increased conflicts with domestic livestock and pets benefit neither humans nor wolves.”

Oh but of course. Managing wolves “socially.” That is the new DNR buzzword that they have been parading about the past few months. That “social acceptance” is sure working well. Just check out the Wisconsin Wolf Hunting Facebook page to see how that “social acceptance” thing is going. As for the “depredation” peak she muses about? Notice how they never mention the $190,000 that was spent on “missing” calves that no evidence exists of. This garbage is only being used to justify their bear hounder written eradication plan. Please give your support to the HSUS and the coalition fighting this in court.

Foot in Mouth Disease

Then we have the insanely offensive and deplorable comments made recently by bear hounder lobbyist and NRA water boy Bob “he of the wind tunnel tested hairdo” Welch about gun control.

“We have a strong agenda coming up for next year, but of course a lot of that’s going to be delayed as the ‘Connecticut Effect’ has to go through the process,” Welch said. He also reiterated the NRA’s opposition to the so-called “gun show loophole” and bragged about keeping it off the Wisconsin legislative agenda so far.

“After Connecticut I had one of the leading Democrats in the legislature — he was with us most of the time, not all the time — he came to me and said, “Bob, I got all these people in my caucus that really want to ban guns and do all this bad stuff, we gotta give them something. How about we close this gun show loophole? Wouldn’t that be good?” Welch said. “And I said, “no, we’re not going to do that.” And so far, nothing’s happened on that.”

Good job Welch. Now not only wildlife lovers know what kind of an a-hole you are. But of course, the NRA denies any affiliation with Welch even though their associations are plastered all over the internet:

While it’s not clear whether Welch, a former Wisconsin state legislator, has ever been paid by the NRA to lobby the state legislature in Wisconsin, it is clear that he and the group he represents has claimed to speak for the NRA in the past.

Welch is a registered lobbyist for Wi-FORCE (Wisconsin Firearm Owners, Ranges, Clubs & Educators, Inc.). The Wi-FORCE website is emblazoned with the words “An NRA Chartered State Association” as well as a newsfeed from the NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action, the group’s lobbying arm.

Of course Welch and the NRA are both liars. This comes directly from the Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association website:

The Hunters Rights Coalition is Wisconsin’s only group 100% dedicated to advancing hunting opportunities and protecting the rights of Wisconsin’s hunters. The Coalition is made up of several groups including: The Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association, Wisconsin Chapters of Safari Club International, Whitetails of Wisconsin, the State Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation, Wisconsin Firearm Owners, Ranges, Clubs, and Educators Inc, and the National Rifle Association.

And guess who is the chief lobbyist for this disgusting group? You guessed right. None other than Bob Welch. This is from his lobbying group website:

Apartment Association of South Central Wisconsin
CCC4RE (Calumet County Citizens for Responsible Energy)
Cellcom
Coalition of Virtual School Families
Corrections Corporation of America
Coulee Area Renewable Energy
Discover Mediaworks
Hunters Rights Coalition
International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 139
Nsight
Olsen’s Mill
Police Officer Defense Fund
Renew Energy, LLC
Renew EU
S.C. Johnson and Son
Swisher International, Inc.
T Wall Properties
United States Sportsmens Alliance
Wisconsin Bear Hunters’ Association
Wisconsin Bio Industry Alliance
Wisconsin Broadcasters Association
Wisconsin Chapters of Safari Club International
Wisconsin Coin Community Alliance
Wisconsin Corn Growers Association
Wisconsin Occupational Therapy Association
Wisconsin Wine and Spirits Institute

Bob Welch and the NRA: a match made in hell. Be proud Wisconsin. This is a former state legislator who continues to write bills, such as the wolf kill bill, and has kill everything legislators groveling at his feet. If what he says is true about having Democrat allies, our problems are even bigger. Maybe now we can have the “Wisconsin Effect” so that other states don’t follow down our despicable path. Do we really need any more evidence to see what bear hounders and gun nuts are really about? Congratulations Welch. Now the rest of the country sees what you and your ilk are all about.