The Humane Society Legislative Fund released its Congressional Scorecard last week, tracking federal legislators’ voting records on major animal-welfare policies. Those policy issues included: a bill banning the transport, possession, purchase, sale, or USDA-funded inspection of horses to be slaughtered for human consumption; legislation creating felony-level penalties for dogfighting and cockfighting and related interstate commerce; the Downed Animal Protection Act prohibiting USDA certification of meat from livestock too injured or sick to walk; a bill restoring a prohibition against using tax dollars to slaughter wild horses and burros; and the PETS act, requiring local authorities to consider pets and service animals in disaster planning. Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson was the only Texas official to score a perfect 100, but with a score of zero, Republican Sen. John Cornyn was not alone in the worst of the worst, joined in shame by Texas Reps. Louie Gohmer, Ruben Hinojosa, Randy Neugebauer, and Ted Poe. (On Wednesday, the HSLF announced that it endorses Lloyd Doggett in District 25)– Dan Mottola
This article appears in Chris Bell.