Donald Trump is the new President. I am interested in animal welfare. What was Trump’s track record during his last presidency in bringing new initiatives to the table on animal welfare in America and across the globe? Answer below the image.
Donald Trump’s presidency had a mix of actions that impacted animal welfare, both positively and negatively. Here’s a breakdown of the major initiatives and decisions from his previous term that affected animal welfare in the U.S. and internationally:
1. Positive Actions for Animal Welfare
- Ending the Slaughter of Dogs and Cats for Human Consumption: In 2018, Trump signed the Dog and Cat Meat Trade Prohibition Act as part of the Farm Bill, which made it illegal to slaughter dogs and cats for human consumption in the U.S. This move was largely symbolic, as the practice was already rare in the U.S., but it reinforced a commitment to animal welfare and aligned U.S. standards with many international norms.
- Banning Cruelty Videos: Trump signed the Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture (PACT) Act in 2019, making animal cruelty a federal felony. This law prohibited animal “crush videos,” where animals are deliberately tortured and killed for entertainment. The PACT Act was a significant bipartisan move toward criminalizing severe forms of animal cruelty nationwide.
- Improvements for Wildlife Trafficking Protections: Trump’s administration supported some anti-poaching and wildlife trafficking efforts. His Department of Justice and Department of Interior worked with other nations to combat trafficking, and the Save Vanishing Species Stamp was renewed, which supports conservation efforts globally.
2. Controversial Policies and Rollbacks Impacting Animal Welfare
- Endangered Species Act Rollbacks: The Trump administration made several changes to the Endangered Species Act (ESA), which many animal welfare advocates argued weakened protections. Changes included limiting the scope of protections for newly listed species and making it easier to remove species from the endangered list. The administration also emphasized economic factors in deciding which species should be protected, which could make it harder to protect habitats and recover species populations.
- Hunting Policy on Public Lands: The administration expanded hunting rights on federal lands, including allowing practices like baiting, trapping, and killing young animals in Alaska. This policy rollback was controversial because it reversed an Obama-era ban on certain hunting practices considered inhumane, such as using spotlights to hunt hibernating bears and wolves.
- Wild Horse and Burro Management: Under Trump, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) ramped up the removal of wild horses and burros from federal lands, arguing that these removals were necessary to protect land health and reduce overpopulation. However, animal rights groups voiced concern over the possibility of these animals ending up in slaughterhouses.
- Animal Testing Regulations: There was no significant progress under the Trump administration to reduce animal testing, which remains a point of contention for animal welfare groups. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), however, did announce in 2019 that it would phase out animal testing for chemical safety by 2035, but this initiative started under Trump’s administration and was expected to span multiple future administrations.
3. Mixed Initiatives and Policies
- International Wildlife Trophy Imports: In 2017, the Trump administration lifted an Obama-era ban on importing elephant trophies from Zimbabwe and Zambia, which had faced significant public backlash. Although Trump personally tweeted his opposition to big game hunting, his administration’s actions permitted trophy imports on a case-by-case basis, which led to criticism from animal conservation groups.
- Regulatory Rollbacks on Environmental Protections: Several environmental policy rollbacks were seen as indirectly impacting animal habitats and welfare. These included loosening regulations on air and water pollution and reducing protections for national monuments and wildlife habitats, which indirectly affected species living in these areas.
In sum, Trump’s first presidency saw both steps forward and backward in animal welfare. While he enacted some important protections against cruelty and supported certain wildlife conservation measures, his administration also rolled back critical environmental regulations and loosened protections for endangered species, which had lasting impacts on animal welfare. The emphasis was often on economic considerations over strict environmental and animal protections, reflecting a policy approach that prioritized deregulation.
For a new presidency, it’s likely that animal welfare advocates will closely watch how Trump approaches these issues moving forward, given the growing public interest in both domestic animal protection and conservation.
The honest truth is that Trump is first and foremost a businessman. He likes making money and will be good for the US economy. That’s what the citizens of America believe and it is one good reason why he won the presidential election. A high percentage of Americans are concerned about living standards and the economy.
In general wildlife conservation has and always will be a barrier to businesses making a profit to varying degrees. Sometimes conservation can be good business such as wildlife photo safaris. But across the globe, business has destroyed much of the world’s natural landscape in which wildlife lives. The classic is deforestation in Africa and Brazil.
Trump prioritises business and therefore by default de-prioritises wildlife conservation. And his sons like to go sport hunting in Africa. There is a classic photo of the pair holding up a dead leopard that they had shot in Africa. It would appear that their father taught them that it is okay to shoot animals for fun. That’s the mentality of Donald Trump, the US’s next president which makes me despondent about animal welfare for the next four years.
More: Kamala Harris is an animal champion. Donald Trump has a poor record on animal welfare
It is a shame that Harris lost as she has a good track record on animal welfare initiatives. And the world needs these initiatives as animals are vulnerable in this human world and they are becoming ever more vulnerable as the world becomes ever more fractious and competitive.
From a wildlife conservation perspective there is a race to the bottom on economic growth which nearly always damages the world’s fauna; the habit for wild species and the prey upon which they feed if they are predators.
Why did Trump win? Many factors, one of which is that the voting public in America appear to prefer a man as a president. A lot of social media users are saying that Harris failed because women are hated in America. Strong words.
Perhaps the biggest factor is the economy. Something that Trump should be good at growing. And he always promises the Earth. He gives people hope with his expansive aims. He allows Americans to dream of change and a better life even he does not deliver.
