January, 04 2021, 11:00pm EDT
Trump Finalizes Industry Requested Rollbacks To Migratory Bird Treaty Act
Gutting rule another parting gift to Big Oil.
WASHINGTON
Today, the Trump administration published its final rule to gut protections for migratory birds. The move finalizes major rollbacks to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) of 1918 before the Biden administration comes into office. In response, Western Values Project Director Jayson O'Neill issued the following statement:
"Trump has, without a doubt, solidified his legacy as the worst environmental, public lands, and wildlife president in history. The rollback of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act is completely barbaric and shows Trump cares more about Big Oil and monied special interests than protecting our wildlife and outdoor heritage.
This is yet another parting gift to Big Oil by corrupt former oil lobbyist Interior Secretary David Bernhardt on his way out the door. Putting another favor for Big Oil before the immediate needs of struggling small businesses and workers during a pandemic illustrates everything that is wrong with the Trump administration and its priorities."
The effort to gut the act has been fueled by Big Oil special interests tied to former oil lobbyist-turned Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt and Trump's political appointees. In four short years, this administration has weakened or rolled back more than 125 environmental protections, with dozens more still in progress.
Previous research from Western Values Project (WVP) found that at least seventeen of Secretary Bernhardt's former clients received handouts during his tenure, but few have received more than Big Oil. The rollbacks to the MBTA exclude the "incidental" killing of birds from the "take" definition of the act, which shield Big Oil and energy corporations from liability and potential penalties. The final environmental impact statement even acknowledges that the preferred rule would "likely result in increased bird mortality."
Public records previously obtained by WVP uncovered a request by industry front-group Western Energy Alliance submitted to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service "suggesting statutory changes to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA)" months before the initial solicitor's opinion was issued in December of 2017.
The Trump administration continues to push through harmful environmental rollbacks for special interests during the lame duck with little accountability or concern, creating layers upon layers of regulatory uncertainty for state and local governments, businesses, and public land users. Read WVP's full research here.
Western Values Project brings accountability to the national conversation about Western public lands and national parks conservation - a space too often dominated by industry lobbyists and their allies in government.
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"So if you're wondering if Donald Trump is trying to kill your kids, yes, yes he is," said one critic.
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Public health advocates, federal lawmakers, and other critics responded with alarm to The New York Timesreporting on Friday that an attorney helping Robert F. Kennedy Jr. select officials for the next Trump administration tried to get the U.S. regulators to revoke approval of the polio vaccine in 2022.
"The United States has been a leader in the global fight to eradicate polio, which is poised to become only the second disease in history to be eliminated from the face of the earth after smallpox," said Liza Barrie, Public Citizen's campaign director for global vaccines access. "Undermining polio vaccination efforts now risks reversing decades of progress and unraveling one of the greatest public health achievements of all time."
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According to the newspaper:
Mr. Siri is also representing ICAN in petitioning the FDA to "pause distribution" of 13 other vaccines, including combination products that cover tetanus, diphtheria, polio, and hepatitis A, until their makers disclose details about aluminum, an ingredient researchers have associated with a small increase in asthma cases.
Mr. Siri declined to be interviewed, but said all of his petitions were filed on behalf of clients. Katie Miller, a spokeswoman for Mr. Kennedy, said Mr. Siri has been advising Mr. Kennedy but has not discussed his petitions with any of the health nominees. She added, "Mr. Kennedy has long said that he wants transparency in vaccines and to give people choice."
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The Times pointed out that experts consider placebo-controlled trials that would deny some children polio shots unethical, because "you're substituting a theoretical risk for a real risk," as Dr. Paul A. Offit, a vaccine expert at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, explained. "The real risks are the diseases."
Ayman Chit, head of vaccines for North America at Sanofi, told the newspaper that development of the vaccine began in 1977, over 280 million people worldwide have received it, and there have been more than 300 studies, some with up to six months of follow-up.
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Asked about RFK Jr.'s anti-vaccine record during a Time "Person of the Year" interview published Thursday, the president-elect said that "we're going to be able to do very serious testing" and certain vaccines could be made unavailable "if I think it's dangerous."
Trump toldNBC News last weekend: "Hey, look, I'm not against vaccines. The polio vaccine is the greatest thing. If somebody told me to get rid of the polio vaccine, they're going to have to work real hard to convince me. I think vaccines are—certain vaccines—are incredible. But maybe some aren't. And if they aren't, we have to find out."
Both comments generated concern—like the Friday reporting in the Times, which University of Alabama law professor and MSNBC columnist Joyce White Vance called "absolutely terrifying."
She was far from alone. HuffPost senior front page editor Philip Lewis said that "this is just so dangerous and ridiculous" while Zeteo founder Mehdi Hasan declared, "We are so—and I use this word advisedly—fucked."
Ryan Cooper, managing editor at The American Prospect, warned that "they want your kids dead."
Author and musician Mikel Jollett similarly said, "So if you're wondering if Donald Trump is trying to kill your kids, yes, yes he is."
Multiple critics altered Trump's campaign slogan to "Make Polio Great Again."
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) responded with a video on social media:
Without naming anyone, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), a polio survivor, put out a lengthy statement on Friday.
"The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives and held out the promise of eradicating a terrible disease. Efforts to undermine public confidence in proven cures are not just uninformed—they're dangerous," he said in part. "Anyone seeking the Senate's consent to serve in the incoming administration would do well to steer clear of even the appearance of association with such efforts."
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