We Win One for Polar Bears: March 27, 2009

It’s about time we got some good news!

Thanks to your efforts -- and those of the more than 49,000 other caring people who took the time to contact their Senators -- we’ve helped secure an important victory for polar bears and other imperiled wildlife. On behalf of all of us at Defenders, I especially want to thank the thousands of activists who personally called their Senators last week.

Last Thursday, the Senate rejected an attempt by Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski to strip language from the omnibus spending bill that would help restore vital protections for polar bears and hundreds of other species protected by the Endangered Species Act.

The Senate last night passed the omnibus bill -- including the provisions in the bill to reverse the Bush Administration’s assault on the Endangered Species Act that Senator Murkowski had sought to remove. President Obama is expected to sign the bill into law later today.

This victory would not have been possible without your efforts, and it underscores the important difference that we can make when we work together to protect our polar bears, wolves and other wildlife.

We’ll have plenty of tough fights in the days ahead. But for the moment, please accept my sincere gratitude for helping us secure this important win for America’s vanishing polar bears and other imperiled species.

For the Wild Ones,

Rodger Schlickeisen President Defenders of Wildlife

P.S. To see how your Senators voted on Murkowski’s amendment* please check out the chart below…

Voting for Polar Bears (52) Akaka (D-HI) Baucus (D-MT) Bayh (D-IN) Bennet (D-CO) Bingaman (D-NM) Boxer (D-CA) Brown (D-OH) Burris (D-IL) Byrd (D-WV) Cantwell (D-WA) Cardin (D-MD) Carper (D-DE) Casey (D-PA) Dodd (D-CT) Dorgan (D-ND) Durbin (D-IL) Feingold (D-WI) Feinstein (D-CA) Gillibrand (D-NY) Hagan (D-NC) Harkin (D-IA) Inouye (D-HI) Johnson (D-SD) Kaufman (D-DE) Kerry (D-MA) Klobuchar (D-MN) Kohl (D-WI) Lautenberg (D-NJ) Leahy (D-VT) Levin (D-MI) Lieberman (ID-CT) McCaskill (D-MO) Menendez (D-NJ) Merkley (D-OR) Mikulski (D-MD) Murray (D-WA) Nelson (D-FL) Pryor (D-AR) Reed (D-RI) Reid (D-NV) Rockefeller (D-WV) Sanders (I-VT) Schumer (D-NY) Shaheen (D-NH) Stabenow (D-MI) Tester (D-MT) Udall (D-CO) Udall (D-NM) Warner (D-VA) Webb (D-VA) Whitehouse (D-RI) Wyden (D-OR)

Voting Against Polar Bears (42) Alexander (R-TN) Barrasso (R-WY) Begich (D-AK) Bennett (R-UT) Bond (R-MO) Brownback (R-KS) Bunning (R-KY) Burr (R-NC) Chambliss (R-GA) Coburn (R-OK) Cochran (R-MS) Collins (R-ME) Corker (R-TN) Cornyn (R-TX) Crapo (R-ID) DeMint (R-SC) Ensign (R-NV) Enzi (R-WY) Graham (R-SC) Grassley (R-IA) Gregg (R-NH) Hatch (R-UT) Hutchison (R-TX) Inhofe (R-OK) Isakson (R-GA) Kyl (R-AZ) Lincoln (D-AR) Lugar (R-IN) Martinez (R-FL) McCain (R-AZ) McConnell (R-KY) Murkowski (R-AK) Nelson (D-NE) Risch (R-ID) Roberts (R-KS) Shelby (R-AL) Snowe (R-ME) Specter (R-PA) Thune (R-SD) Vitter (R-LA) Voinovich (R-OH) Wicker (R-MS)

Not Voting: Conrad (D-ND), Johanns (R-NE), Kennedy (D-MA), Landrieu (D-LA), Sessions (R-AL)

* S.Amdt. 599 to H.R. 1105 (Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009)

On behalf of myself and my Nanuuq Relations I say Thank-you Very Much!