Why Do Republicans Want to Kill Horses?

Republican lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives recently took the politically questionable – and morally objectionable – step of voting to allow horses to once again be slaughtered on American soil for human consumption.

It’s a massive power grab by the beef lobby, which would prefer to cull wild horses and burros so public lands can be devoted to livestock-grazing. No one else will rejoice in the heartland at the prospect of being able to chow down on a horse steak or a horse-burger. Most Americans are opposed to hippophagy, the eating of horse flesh. To many Americans in both major political parties, the issue of equine slaughter is on a par with clubbing baby harp seals to death or killing dolphins. And it should be. Horses are companion animals, just like dogs and cats. The horse is the unique symbol of the West and of Americans’ pioneering spirit. Republican celebrities like actress Bo Derek are outspoken opponents of killing horses for food. Republican lawmakers should be too.

So why now – with the Republican agenda faltering in Congress and the Trump White House under siege – is the GOP formulating new ways to alienate voters and play to their caricature as heartless servants of big business? Why are Republicans hell-bent on resurrecting an ugly, morally reprehensible practice that would put Misty of Chincoteague and Mister Ed back on the dinner table?

Republican members of the House Appropriations Committee recently approved reversing a de facto ban on slaughtering horses at meat-processing plants. Under current federal law, wild horses enjoy some legal protection; slaughtering healthy wild horses is forbidden. Several states outlaw the slaughter of horses for human consumption. Among them are California, Illinois, Mississippi, New Jersey, Oklahoma, and Texas.

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