People Against Pombo!

You know you've got problems when, between you and Nixon, you're the asshole. When a retired congressman - from your own party, no less - considers re-entering politics solely to ensure your defeat. And he's not your only challenger. And even your challenger has a challenger...and...oh hell, I haven't got all night:

The Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund has begun a campaign to oust the man voted the "Most Anti-Conservation Member of Congress" -- Republican Richard Pombo (CA-11). Rep. Pombo is the best kind of friend special interests have ever had. He has tried to gut the Endangered Species Act, restart commercial whaling, open coastlines to offshore drilling, sell off 15 national parks, allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and weaken the Magna Carta of environmental law -- the National Environmental Policy Act.

...Challengers to Pombo in his district are Republican Pete McCloskey, a 78-year-old former congressman who was an original co-author of the 1973 Endangered Species Act -- the bill Pombo is trying to gut. McCloskey has looked for a younger Republican candidate, but has not been able to find one, so he said he will enter the race if one does not step forward.

On the Democrats side is Jerry McNerney, who is a wind power engineer and who lost to Pombo in the last election. McNerney's competition will be Steve Filson, an airline pilot from Danville with no political experience.

McCloskey vs. McNerney - that'll make for an interesting "pregnant chad" scenario. I really don't care who wins as long as Pombo goes down.



[UPDATE from 1.9.2006] McCloskey is in!

"Winning isn't the issue. The issue is forcing a debate on which way the Republican Party goes," McCloskey said. "This guy Pombo, he wants to privatize the remaining public lands in California and he has the power to do it. He's the chairman of the House Resources Committee. He's up to his neck with Abramoff."

...McCloskey, a lawyer in Redwood City, helped write the Endangered Species Act while he was in congress, and he ran for the Republican presidential nomination against
Richard Nixon in 1972 on an anti-Vietnam War platform.

He said Saturday that he spent months trying to find a candidate to run against Pombo, also a Republican, who is in his seventh term.

"I'm going to run against him because nobody else will," McCloskey said. He said he planned to formally announce his candidacy Monday.

Another one to keep our eyes on Sen. Larry Craig - he and Pombo are peas in a pod.


Tags: endangered species, Richard Pombo, Pombo, environment, sustainability