Thursday, August 4, 2016

Hillary Clinton's Anti-Hunting Remarks Could Give Sportsmen Pause




That Mrs. Clinton has consistently shown her anti-Second Amendment cards is now further revealed that she doesn’t much care for hunting, either.


During a campaign whistle stop in Las Vegas, Nevada, today (August 4th) Mrs. Clinton’s stump speech was interrupted by a small band of animal rights activists who media outlets say rushed the stage.


When the Secret Service took the proper security precautions one agent was overheard on an open microphone that all was okay and that Mrs. Clinton could continue with her speech.


That did not entirely satisfy Mrs. Clinton who took the bait and noted that: "We’ll keep talking and apparently these people are here to protest Trump because Trump and his kids have killed a lot of animals, so thank you for making that point."


Thing was Mrs. Clinton was totally wrong and consequently she deserves Four Pinocchios for her serious breach of honesty.


Donald Trump does not hunt and has stated he has never hunted. However, his two boys – Donald Jr. and Eric - do, and were taught so by their maternal grandfather.


The question is whether the two sons are fair game for such criticism. Maybe, yes, since they are out stumping for their father. Maybe, no, since what they do in their personal lives is their business and not subject to political rhetoric and opinion.


Of course, Donald Jr. Trump and Eric Trump can be thumped for comments regarding policy and positions taken by the father, the presidential candidate. Yet it would be just as ethically disagreeable to drag up the fact that both Mrs. Clinton’s husband – former President Bill Clinton – and their daughter, Chelsea Clinton – are vegans and thus might not be inclined to agree with sport hunting, let alone the concept of the “American Model” of wildlife management.


What her outburst does do is make all-ready nervous American sportsmen and sportswomen more worried.


After all, it was during an interview conducted earlier this summer by “Field & Stream” magazine editor Mike Toth of representatives to both Mr. Trump and Mrs. Clinton that the latter said his candidate “…will listen to sportsmen and sportswomen…”


The interview took place at a two-day Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership meeting in Fort Collins, Colorado. The short interviews appeared in the on-line edition of “Outdoor Life” magazine, “Field & Stream’s” sibling publication.


Speaking for Mrs. Clinton was U.S. Representative Mike Thompson while Trump’s eldest son, Donald Jr., spoke on behalf of his father.

I
n his published remarks, Thompson is quoted as saying about Mrs. Clinton lending an ear to hunters and anglers:


“I think the fact that she asked me to come and meet with you is an indication that she cares what the hook and bullet community wants and needs,” the published interview with Representative Thompson says.

Representative Thompson’s statement to the outdoors magazine continues with: “She will listen to sportsmen and women and I anticipate that I will have an ear in the White House and I’ll be a good bridge. I know the folks who you all represent, I’ve worked with you and I’ve worked with these organizations, I’ve lived this life my entire life. She’ll know what’s going on, she gets it and she will be operational to our advantage.”

As for Donald Trump Jr’s remarks, the short magazine narrative goes: “For us, it’s a real issue. Preservation of habitat, conservation of species, the ability to access these lands, the Second Amendment… those issues are the big sportsmen issues.

“Hunting and fishing is my lifestyle, it’s how I choose to live my life and it’s how my brother chooses to live his life, and it’s how we are going to raise our families. To me these issues are as important as many other things that people probably view of much greater importance, and I will be a loud voice in my father’s ear on all of these issues.”
Based on Mrs. Clinton’s impromptu remarks, it would seem that the kid’s pro-hunting arguments trump those of Mrs. Clinton and her surrogate.


- Jeffrey L. Frischkorn
JFrischk@Ameritech.net

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