1:17
- ABC News
- March 18, 2018
Trump wildlife council mostly trophy hunters
Several animal advocacy groups said the council is biased.
1:17
The committee expects to provide recommendations by fall of this year on multiple issues relating to the import of animals legally hunted overseas to the United States.
Those recommendations are expected to include \"recommending removal of barriers to the importation into the United States of legally hunted wildlife,\" an ongoing review of bans on importing hunted animals and \"providing recommendations that seek to resume the legal trade of those items, where appropriate,\" and recommending ways to streamline or expedite import permits, according to the group's charter.
The government's policies on trophy hunting permits have been a source of controversy over the last few years.
The Trump administration faced intense public scrutiny after announcing that it would begin allowing permits to import elephant trophies from some countries in November. That decision was quickly put on pause after the president tweeted calling it a horror show. He later said in an interview he didn't agree with killing elephants.
![\"In](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/Politics/AP_RYAN_ZINKE_MO_20170929_4x3t_384.jpg\")
That decision upset hunting groups like Safari Club International who had sued the Obama administration to lift a ban on elephant trophy imports put in place in 2014. A judge's ruling in that case recently led the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to withdraw the ban but the decision is still facing legal challenges.
Zinke said in a hearing Thursday that no elephants have been imported since that decision. He has also said that the new policy is \"100 percent aligned with the president.\"
On Friday the council elected former congressman Bill Brewster as chairman. Brewster retired from Congress in 1997 and worked as a board member for the NRA and a lobbyist, according to the NRA publication American Hunter.
The elected vice chair is Jenifer Chatfield, a veterinarian who worked in the office of Rep. Brian Babin, R-Texas, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association website.
In the first meeting, council members heard presentations from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Deputy Director Greg Sheehan, Craig Hoover, who runs the agency's management of an international treaty on threatened species, and the head of the Fish and Wildlife Service law enforcement office, David Hubbard.
Other members include Paul Babaz, the president of Safari Club International. The Safari Club praised the Trump administration for lifting a ban on imports of elephant trophies from some countries and still has a lawsuit pending after it sued to reverse the ban on elephant trophies put in place by the Obama administration in 2014.
The Safari Club described all 16 council members as \"various facets of the pro-hunting community\" in a blog post announcing that Babaz was appointed.
Cameron Hanes is a bowhunter and an athlete sponsored by Under Armour. He told ABC News in a message that he's never killed an elephant, lion or rhino.
\"I'm on the council because I care about animals. And I hunt. The two aren't mutually exclusive as everyone on the council has a deep concern for animal welfare and just as deep of love for Africa and its people,\" Hanes said in a message Friday night.
A post shared by Cameron Hanes (@cameronrhanes) on Mar 15, 2018 at 11:23am PDT
Another council member, Keith Mark, hosts a hunting show on the Outdoor Channel. He has gone hunting with Donald Trump Jr. prior to being appointed to the council and has posted photos of meetings with Zinke and Trump Jr.
Then today great hunt w/ @ZachMark12 @KrisKobach1787 @DonaldJTrumpJr then a great moose dinner w/friends thanks to @jeannemark at our home! pic.twitter.com/aRib1EJF1m
— Keith Mark (@keithmarkmra) November 30, 2017
Great evening w/ @SecretaryZinke & @DonaldJTrumpJr talking about #conservation & our #hunting heritage! The key is access for #WeThePeople pic.twitter.com/eByI65xnl5
— Keith Mark (@keithmarkmra) February 10, 2018
Terry Maple, a psychology professor at Georgia Tech University and former CEO of Zoo Atlanta, is also on the council and listed as \"Tourism, outfitter, and/or guide industries related to international hunting.\" Maple co-wrote a book on the environment debate with former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich in 2007.
Hunting advocates often cite revenue generated from U.S. hunters that travel abroad as an important source of funding for conservation efforts in those countries. In Hoover's presentation Friday he said that international hunters contribute $325 million to countries in East and South Africa each year, according to a 2015 Safari Club report on revenue from trophy hunting.
Hunters that travel to countries like Zambia, Zimbabwe or South Africa to hunt have to pay significant fees to that country's government, which is supposed to use that money for conservation programs. The hunt itself can cost tens of thousands of dollars in fees and a guide. According to that report 74 percent of hunters visiting African countries were from the United States.
But critics say that it is difficult to ensure that money is used for conservation and that there are limited controls in countries like Zimbabwe, for example. A 2016 report by Democrats on the House Natural Resources Committee, which oversees Interior and the Fish and Wildlife Service, found that there hunting can only help wildlife populations if it is properly regulated and recommended the FWS make some changes to how it issues permits for trophy hunters.
Several members of the committee defended their involvement on social media today, saying that hunters are especially dedicated to conservation efforts.
I think if you give the IWCC a chance to do our research & fact finding you might be pleasantly surprised with the outcome! @SecretaryZinke https://t.co/k2avAGQgvz
— Keith Mark (@keithmarkmra) March 16, 2018
A post shared by Ivan Carter (@ivan.carter) on Mar 16, 2018 at 9:54am PDT
Animal advocacy groups like the Humane Society of the United States say the council is biased and that the members will make money from expanding trophy hunting. Protesters from the nonprofit Center for Biological Diversity gathered outside the department's entrance before the meeting.
Protesters in front of @Interior demand #BanTrophyHunting to welcome @SecretaryZinke’s #iwcc, stuffed w/ hunters @mbieseck @CenterForBioDiv pic.twitter.com/78RGiHitD5
— Jean Su (@ajeansu) March 16, 2018
Masha Kalinina, an international trade policy specialist with the Humane Society, said in her prepared comments that the council is more of a trade association than an advisory panel.
\"Notably missing from this council are qualified representatives of the broader conservation community, with scientific credentials and direct experience with the management of successful conservation programs, along with wildlife law enforcement experts, and others, who have no financial or commercial stake to cloud or shape their judgments,\" Kalinina said in her statement.
.@HSIGlobal, @HumaneSociety & other NGOs speaking up for ???????? in opposition of the #TrophyHunting meeting hosted by @Interior & @USFWS today. Trophy hunting is poorly regulated, corruption-fueled & biologically unsustainable. See today’s blog: https://t.co/Y5g7mbYxoT pic.twitter.com/wODIZKtNCx
— Masha Kalinina (@mkalinina2014) March 16, 2018
An anti-animal cruelty group, the Animal Welfare Institute, said in its submitted public comment that the council is wasteful and that the Trump administration has not held meetings of wildlife trafficking advisory councils created by President Barack Obama.
\"The makeup of this new council is also of significant concern, with designated seats for representatives of the firearms and ammunition industries, who have no scientific or conservation expertise. There is no seat at the table for experts with a scientific or conservation focus,\" the group's government affairs director Nancy Blaney said in the statement.
Another animal rights nonprofit, Born Free USA, filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service this week for documents related to the creation of the council.
","canonicalUrl":"https://abcnews.com/Politics/trump-administration-wildlife-council-hunting-advocates/story?id=53803070","legacySlug":"/news/story/trump-administration-wildlife-council-hunting-advocates-53803070","noIndexNoFollow":false},"publishTime":"09:48","publishDate":"03-18-2018","updatedTime":"09:48","updatedDate":"03-18-2018","socialImage":{"alt":"FILE - In this May 9, 2017, file photo, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke rides a horse in the new Bears Ears National Monument near Blanding, Utah. ","credit":"AP","ratio":"16x9","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/Politics/AP_RYAN_ZINKE_MO_20170929_16x9_1600.jpg","width":992,"height":558},"datePublished":"3/18/2018 09:48:32 GMT","video":{"live":false,"id":53803070,"headline":"Trump wildlife council mostly trophy hunters","mediaAssetTitle":"Trophy hunter council","description":"Several animal advocacy groups said the council is biased. ","duration":"1:17","posterImg":{"url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","width":608,"height":342},"video":{"feed":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2017/11/171117_vod_orig_elephant_celeb_reax_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8"},"playlist":["53534003","51178663","32785057"]},"relatedItems":[{"contentType":"story","date":"March 6, 2018","headline":"Trump administration withdraws ban on elephant trophy permits","section":"news","slug":"/news/story/trump-administration-withdraws-ban-elephant-trophy-permits-53534003","id":53534003,"image":{"alt":"Trump administration withdraws ban on elephant trophy permits","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/Politics/elephants-zambia-gty-mem-180306_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket via Getty Images","ratio":"1x1"}},{"contentType":"story","date":"November 15, 2017","headline":"Trump admin. to reverse ban on elephant trophies from Africa ","section":"news","slug":"/news/story/trump-admin-reverse-ban-elephant-trophies-africa-51178663","id":51178663,"image":{"alt":"Trump admin. to reverse ban on elephant trophies from Africa ","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/Politics/elephant-trophy-gty-hb-171115_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"Tony Karumba/AFP/Getty Images","ratio":"1x1"}},{"contentType":"story","date":"July 31, 2015","headline":"The Trophy-Hunting Industry in Africa Explained","section":"news","slug":"/news/story/cecil-lion-trophy-hunting-industry-africa-explained-32785057","id":32785057,"image":{"alt":"The Trophy-Hunting Industry in Africa Explained","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/US/GTY_africa_trophy_hunting_2s_jt_150731_4x3t_240.jpg","credit":"Getty Images","ratio":"1x1"}}],"relatedContentSection":"news","schemaContent":{"name":"Trump wildlife council mostly trophy hunters","description":"Several animal advocacy groups said the council is biased. ","duration":"1:17","uploadDate":"03-18-2018","publication":"03-18-2018","images":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","url":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2017/11/171117_vod_orig_elephant_celeb_reax_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","contentUrl":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2017/11/171117_vod_orig_elephant_celeb_reax_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","link":"https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/trump-administration-wildlife-council-hunting-advocates-53803070"}},"playlist":[{"id":"132281378","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132283010","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132273278","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132231169","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132206748","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132200241","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132054443","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132054798","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132033010","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131912713","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131830583","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131834976","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131554765","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131554815","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131543053","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131432442","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131121474","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131247079","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131228784","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131178806","contentType":"story","section":"news"}],"kvps":{"pgtyp":"article","lang":"en","sp":"goodmorningamerica","programmatic":"true","bundleId":"com.abcnews"}},"analytics":{"accountID":"wdgnewwdgnewgmaweb","ns":"gma","pageName":"gma:news:video","pageType":"video","globalSpecVersion":"v1.08","siteDifferentiator":"gma:site","tagID":"g_page01","userABCookie":"0","section":"news","title":"Trump wildlife council mostly trophy hunters","pubTime":"05:48","pubDate":"03-18-2018","modTime":"05:48","modDate":"03-18-2018","taxonomyTags":"none","id":53803070,"editorialOtherSubjects":"","wordCount":"none","columns":"none","authors":"","authorsUnit":"none","authorsBureau":"none","subBrand":"Good Morning America","provider":"Good Morning America","videoName":"Trump wildlife council mostly trophy hunters","mediaAssetTitle":"Trophy hunter council","videoId":53803070,"mediaOnPage":"video","legacySlug":"/news/story/trump-administration-wildlife-council-hunting-advocates-53803070"},"taboola":{}},"request":{"headers":{},"httpVersion":"1.1","method":"GET","url":"/video/53803070","vary":{"host":"www.goodmorningamerica.com","cached":true,"path":"/video/53803070","forwarded-proto":"https","device":"desktop","userab":"0"}},"viewport":{"width":1260,"height":0},"user":{}};