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Coburn Blocks Measure
By Fred Love
(Fort Smith, Ark) Southwest Times Record
March 29, 2007
WASHINGTON — A bill strengthening penalties for cockfighting and other events pitting animals against each other ran into a roadblock in Congress on Wednesday.
Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., said he has blocked the bill that would make it a felony to transport animals across state lines for purposes of participating in fights.
The violation is currently a misdemeanor.
Coburn called the bill a “feel-good law” that targets gambling, and gun and drug trafficking associated with animal fighting. He said those already are felonies.
“There’s nothing it accomplishes that isn’t already being accomplished by state or federal law,” he said.
Coburn said he does not support animal fighting but objects to redundant laws.
The House approved a similar bill Monday by a 368-39 vote, and the Senate Judiciary Committee gave the measure the green light March 15.
Wayne Pacelle, president of the Humane Society of the United States, said Coburn is standing in the way of a bill that has received strong bipartisan backing.
“If this bill comes up for a vote, it has at least 95 votes in the Senate,” Pacelle said. “Can one man obstruct the work of the Senate is the issue.”
Any senator can put a hold on a bill to keep it from advancing to the floor.
Senators sometimes use the tactic to bargain for a change in a bill’s language, but Coburn said he didn’t think the bill’s proponents would offer a compromise.
Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., the bill’s sponsor, still considers the animal fighting bill a priority, said spokeswoman Elizabeth Ferranti.
A majority of Congress has pledged support for the measure, along with hundreds of law enforcement agencies including the National Sheriffs’ Association, Ferranti said.
Pacelle said stronger federal penalties would help law enforcement officials crack down on animal fighting syndicates that often span more than one state.
State and local law enforcement agencies struggle to cope with large animal fighting rings that extend beyond their jurisdictions, he said.
The United Gamefowl Breeders Association applauds Coburn’s action, said director emeritus Larry Matthews.
The bill could allow felony charges to be brought against gamefowl enthusiasts who raise birds for their meat and feathers but never enter them in fights, he said.
Enthusiasts also cross state lines with birds to exhibit them in competitions like dog or horse shows, he said.
“A law-abiding citizen could have to spend a lot of money to prove their innocence,” Matthews said.
Pacelle called that argument a “red herring,” pointing out that the law prohibiting the transport of animals across state lines for fights has existed since 1976. This bill only strengthens the penalties for violations of the law.
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