Santa Fe New Mexican – Letters to the editor, November 11, 2015
Horse slaughter must stay defunded
Now that President Barack Obama has approved a budget (“Obama signs budget bill,” Nov. 2) Congress will have to decide how to appropriate the money. Amid fights over highly politicized matters, important bipartisan issues must not be forgotten. New Mexico remains in the national spotlight as the unfortunate battleground for the cruel horse slaughter industry, and every year, Congress must ensure our tax dollars don’t fund the slaughter of horses for human consumption to fill a niche overseas market.
This year, the Senate included the defunding language by committee vote, but a House of Representatives committee did not. Sen. Tom Udall has been a tremendous leader on this issue, voting yes on this amendment in 2014 and sponsoring the amendment himself this year. I urge all members of Congress to take a stand and make sure the language defunding horse slaughter is included in any annual spending package.
Jessica Johnson
chief legislative officer
Animal Protection of New Mexico
Santa Fe
