gznokes
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Did you guys see this in the Wall Street Journal this morning?
California State Democrats are trying to get the State's Fish and Game Commission President fired because he LEGALLY killed a mountain lion in ID. Apparently they feel it doesn't reflect California values.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203986604577255732262230236.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
California Official Under Fire for Mountain-Lion Hunt
Democratic lawmakers in California are seeking to remove the president of the state's Fish and Game Commission, after a photo surfaced of him posing with the carcass of a mountain lion he recently killed on a hunt in Idaho.
Zuma Press
Daniel Richards with mountain lion.
.Hunting mountain lions is legal in Idaho but not in California.
Daniel Richards, appointed to the part-time job in 2008 by then-Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, should step down because his kill conflicts with the ban on mountain-lion hunting in California passed by voters in 1990, California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom said.
"I do appreciate that you did nothing illegal in Idaho, but it is clear that your actions do not reflect the values of the people of California," Mr. Newsom, a Democrat and former San Francisco mayor, said in a letter Monday to Mr. Richards.
A resolution to remove Mr. Richards was being drafted in the Democrat-controlled Assembly on Thursday and could be acted on by next week, said Paola Avila, a spokeswoman for Assemblyman Ben Hueso. The Chula Vista, Calif., Democrat has gathered names of 39 other Democratic Assembly members seeking Mr. Richards' resignation. While California governors appoint fish and game commissioners, the legislature has power to remove them on a simple majority vote.
Mr. Richards, a real-estate broker in Upland, Calif., declined to comment for this article. In a letter he sent Tuesday to Mr. Hueso, Mr. Richards wrote: "Do you really think a California Commissioner is actually obligated to follow California laws across these United States? Really?"
Responding to criticism from some animal-rights activists that he killed the animal only for sport, Mr. Richards wrote: "we did dine on Mountain Lion for dinner" and added: "I will continue to hunt and fish wherever I please?There is ZERO chance I would consider resigning my position."
Some Republican lawmakers have rallied to Mr. Richards' defense, saying he had a right to hunt the mountain lion.
One of the state capital's most powerful Democrats, Senate President Darrell Steinberg, said Thursday he wasn't ready to say what action, if any, should be taken against Mr. Richards. Mr. Richards' appointment expires Jan. 15 next year.
Referring to the commissioner's letter to Mr. Hueso, however, Mr. Steinberg told reporters in Sacramento Thursday that "he acted like a jackass."
Mr. Richards is one of five fish-and-game commissioners appointed by the governor who set regulations governing activities such as hunting and fishing in California.
California State Democrats are trying to get the State's Fish and Game Commission President fired because he LEGALLY killed a mountain lion in ID. Apparently they feel it doesn't reflect California values.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203986604577255732262230236.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
California Official Under Fire for Mountain-Lion Hunt
Democratic lawmakers in California are seeking to remove the president of the state's Fish and Game Commission, after a photo surfaced of him posing with the carcass of a mountain lion he recently killed on a hunt in Idaho.
Zuma Press
Daniel Richards with mountain lion.
.Hunting mountain lions is legal in Idaho but not in California.
Daniel Richards, appointed to the part-time job in 2008 by then-Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, should step down because his kill conflicts with the ban on mountain-lion hunting in California passed by voters in 1990, California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom said.
"I do appreciate that you did nothing illegal in Idaho, but it is clear that your actions do not reflect the values of the people of California," Mr. Newsom, a Democrat and former San Francisco mayor, said in a letter Monday to Mr. Richards.
A resolution to remove Mr. Richards was being drafted in the Democrat-controlled Assembly on Thursday and could be acted on by next week, said Paola Avila, a spokeswoman for Assemblyman Ben Hueso. The Chula Vista, Calif., Democrat has gathered names of 39 other Democratic Assembly members seeking Mr. Richards' resignation. While California governors appoint fish and game commissioners, the legislature has power to remove them on a simple majority vote.
Mr. Richards, a real-estate broker in Upland, Calif., declined to comment for this article. In a letter he sent Tuesday to Mr. Hueso, Mr. Richards wrote: "Do you really think a California Commissioner is actually obligated to follow California laws across these United States? Really?"
Responding to criticism from some animal-rights activists that he killed the animal only for sport, Mr. Richards wrote: "we did dine on Mountain Lion for dinner" and added: "I will continue to hunt and fish wherever I please?There is ZERO chance I would consider resigning my position."
Some Republican lawmakers have rallied to Mr. Richards' defense, saying he had a right to hunt the mountain lion.
One of the state capital's most powerful Democrats, Senate President Darrell Steinberg, said Thursday he wasn't ready to say what action, if any, should be taken against Mr. Richards. Mr. Richards' appointment expires Jan. 15 next year.
Referring to the commissioner's letter to Mr. Hueso, however, Mr. Steinberg told reporters in Sacramento Thursday that "he acted like a jackass."
Mr. Richards is one of five fish-and-game commissioners appointed by the governor who set regulations governing activities such as hunting and fishing in California.