The Dilemma of Democrats in States Dominated by Ranchers and Farmers opposed to Endangered Species Protections:

The Dilemma of Democrats in States Dominated by Ranchers and Farmers opposed to Endangered Species Protections:
 
The complex politics of wildlife is revealed in the votes of Senators Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin who are supporting legislation to remove protections from gray wolves in the Great Lakes area.  Survey data of the general public in states like Minnesota and Wisconsin show that the general public supports protection of species like wolves & grizzlies. But, despite this general support and the generally progressive nature of parties in these 2 states (though Wisconsin is increasingly becoming a red state), these senators are supporting these measures.  Why? An article by Jimmy Tobias argues that the senators are undermining their ability to resist future changes to the Endangered Species Act. They argue that the ESA has been so successful (and they support it) that the wolves can be delisted. But the politics is that specific groups in their states such as ranchers and farmers are strongly anti-wolf and are passionate in their views while the supporters do not place a high salience to the wolf issue, thus again explaining why minorities win out over majorities in wildlife politics. For example, recently the Wisconsin Farm Bureau presented a detailed case of a farming family whose livestock was threatened by wolves as the basis for delisting them in the Great Lakes area. See the article by Tobias: These Democrats Are Trying to Sabotage the Endangered Species Act: It’s not a good look. By Jimmy Tobias. PSMag, Accessed 4/8/17 from https://psmag.com/these-democrats-are-trying-to-sabotage-the-endangered-species-act-e46a247649e0